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THE 



TRUE PATH; 



or, 



GOSPEL TEMPERANCE: 

BEING 

THE LIFE, WORK AND SPEECHES 



OF 



FRANCIS MURPHY, 

DR. HENRY A. REYNOLDS, 

AND THEIR CO-LABORERS. 



EMBRACING ALSO A HISTORY OF THE 

WOMEN'S CHRISTIAN TEMPERANCE UNION. 



by/ 

REV. J. SAM'L YANDERSLOOT, 

i ♦ 
AUTHOR OF 

*' Comprehensive Bible Encylopedia," "Explanatory Bible Dictionary," " Bible History 

and Analysis," "Books of Biblical Antiquities," "New and Improved 

Dictionary of Bible Names," <fcc., &c. 

NEW-YORK : 
HENRY S. GOODSPEED & 

BOSTON : CROCKER & CO. LONDON, ONT. : J. O. ROBIN- 
SON. CLEVELAND AND ASHLAND, OHIO : C. C. 
WICK & CO. ST. LOUIS, MO., 305 LOCUST 
STREET : J. H. CHAMBERS & CO. 



^T 






K V 5 ?*1 ft 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1878, by 
H. S. GOODSPEED 
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. 



TO 

CYRUS STURDIVANT, 

THE MODEST 

Hero and Christian Reformer, 

WHOSE WORTH AND SACRIFICES — THOUGH ALMOST LOST SIGHT OF IN THE 

MAGNITUDE OF THE PRESENT STRUGGLE— HAVE 

BROUGHT, UNDER GOD, 

FRANCIS MURPHY 

FROM THE POWER OF RUM TO TEMPERANCE, 

AND OF 

SIN TO RIGHTEOUSNESS, 

THIS WORK IS DEDICATED, 

AS AN ACT OF JUSTICE AND KINDLY ACKNOWLEDGMENT, 

BY THE AUTHOR. 



PREFACE. 



Great movements have their literature. It has invariably 
been so. And it would be strange if, in our civilization, the 
Murphy and Reynolds temperance reforms should prove excep- 
tions. It is not enough that books should be published in 
support of the holy cause. The popular mind will not rest 
here. Its special and wonderful achievements must be 
recorded. The needed truths must be heralded and preserved. 

In deference to these reflections this book is sent forth. It 
has only been prepared, however, in the spirit that should be 
) dominant in every work of life — that of doing good. We 
\ have had nothing narrower to inspire us. The thought that 
J what Francis Murphy and Dr. Henry A. Reynolds have done, 
in particular places, both of themselves and through their fol- 
lowers, might not be ineffectual in its saving influence among 
the quiet villages and humble homes throughout our beloved 
borders, has nerved the writer to his task along many weary 
hours before daylight and after nightfall. 

Many facts furnished in this volume have been gathered 
from Mr. Murphy's lips, by a reporter specially employed, and 
have never heretofore found their way into print. They have 
\ also, in some instances, been properly clothed by ourselves, in 
such a way as not to mislead, either by undue exaltation or any 
attempt at their abasement. Thus they are peculiar and indi- 
vidual property. The speeches we present have been, in cases, 

v 



VI PREFACE. 

solely procured through personal painstaking and expense. 
They can be found nowhere else. 

Not a few of the reformed men, being familiar with Mr. 
Murphy's reticence upon things relating to his career, have, in 
looking over some of the advance sheets, been amazed at the 
fullness and evident completeness of our history of the 
Apostle's life. They have conceded that it gives every indica- 
tion of a connected narration of all the circumstances most 
important to the general reader. And such we believe to be 
the fact. Certainly we have done all that Mr. Murphy can or 
will look for, everything considered. We have attempted, at 
every turn, to hold up the hands of the prophet ; and, although 
not a famous Aaron, we have assumed the role of an un- 
pretending Hur. Much of what we say above of Mr. Murphy 
is applicable to what we have written of Dr. Reynolds.' 

Our mind has been no little encouraged by the report that 
not a few of the reformer's friends have ordered many copies 
of the work, and they are unreserved in their avowed purpose 
to regard it as a vade mecum in this gigantic campaign. 

Finally, we have not written for compensation. This con- 
cerns only one — a grain in the desert of life, a drop in the 
ocean of time. But we have fitted up what we would modestly 
regard as a " little labor of love." Had our spiritual desires 
and advantages not appeared, we would never have begun it. 
We have looked out upon the hundreds of thousands going 
along in the deep current of sin to the yawning and seething 
cataract of destruction, and we have thrown out this life-lne 
to them, not without many anxious prayers and tears, in the 
hope that some, yea, many, might grasp it and be saved. An[d 
we have lifted up our eyes and heart " unto the hills, froiin 
whence cometh our help," and seen the golden wreaths qi 
eternal royalty waving above them ; and have heard tlie 
words, so prophetically scintillating through the swift rolling 
centuries, " They that be wise shall shine as the brightness o\ 
the firmament : and they that turn many to righteousness, as 
the stars forever and ever." J. Saml. V. 



TABLE OF CONTENTS. 



\ PAGE 

Dedication 3 

The Murphy Pledge 4 

Preface 5 

List op Illustrations 11 

PART I. 

THE SUBJECT AS PRESENTED TO-DAY. 

CHAPTER I. 

Mr. Murphy's Influence. — His Success. — Leading Characteristics. . . 13 

CHAPTER II. 

Mr. Murphy's Difficulties. — Influences against him. — A Warning. . , 19 

CHAPTER III. 

Previous Temperance Movements, — Different Opinions current.— 

At the Roots 26 

CHAPTER IV. 

Gospel Temperance. — Opposition of Christians. — The Term as used 
by Mr. Murphy. — Example and Teaching of Christ. — Christ's 
Wine not Intoxicating. — Mr. Murphy consistent. — Necessity 
for Gospel Temperance 34 

PART II. 
THE BIOGRAPHY OF FRANCIS MURPHY. 

] CHAPTER V. 

M? r. Murphy's early Life. — His Parents' Religion. — Struggles with 
Poverty. — Peculiar Hospitality. — Youngsters huddled into the 
Kitchen. — Wrong Treatment. — Irish Custom of using Liquor. 
Appetite for Liquor first formed. — A Way that is not the " True 
Path." — Limited Educational Advantages. — A "Piggy-back" 



Vill CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Flogging. — Outrageously dealt with. — Effect of Unkindness 
and Injustice. — "An Act most difficult to Forgive." — Longing 
for a Freer Air. — An Immovable Purpose. — Employed at a 
Castle.— A Difficult Task 45 

CHAPTER VI. 

Coming to America. — The Decision. — A self-sacrificing Woman. — 
Circumstances of the Event. — Last Week in Ireland. — The 
Last Night. — The Mother's Blessing. — The Separation. — The 
Voyage 56 

CHAPTER VII. 

On the Sea and in the New World. — Drinking and Treating. — 
Turned out upon the World. — Everything gone. — A Situation 
Secured. — Off to Canada. — At Farm Work. — Gets Married. — A 
Christian Wife. — Arrival of a Brother 63 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Removed to Portland. — A new Business. — His Wife opposed to it. 
— Acting Alone. — Bradley House Rented. — Will sell Liquor 
Respectably. — Promised her not to drink. — At Home in the 
Hotel. — A Genuine Convert. — Business Successful. — A Wreck 
at last.- — Manner ©f his Ruin. — A Man's Neck broken. — Contin- 
uous Dissipation 69 

CHAPTER IX. 

The Arm of the Law to be invoked. — Everything lost, and without 
a Friend. — Arrested. — A confiding Man. — Thrust into Jail. — 
Deserted. — An erroneous Opinion. — A faulty System. — Wrong 
in Practice. — Must go to the Fountain Head. — Auxiliaries.- — A 
Suffering Family 76 

CHAPTER X. 

Captain Cyrus Sturdivant. — Religious Services in the Jail. — Mr. 
Murphy attends the Meeting. — A True Friend. — Valuable Men. 
— There is Hope for You. — Power of Kindness. — Little Things. 
—Noble Feelings.— " God Bless You !" 84 

CHAPTER XL 

A Week of Suffering. — The Words put into his Mouth. — Influences 
of the Spirit essential. — Plan to be adhered to. — A notable Day. 
— Great Religious Meeting in Jail. — Espied his Wife. — A Bou- 
quet and a Fond Meeting. — Sought out by a Loving Company. . 



CHAPTER XII. 
Prayer-meeting in the dark Dungeon. — Mr. Murphy's Conversion. — 
The New Birth. — A subject worthy attention. — Loose Religion. 
— Days of Miracles. — A Transformation. — Light Hearts. — Kept 
in Prison. — Asks to conduct a Prayer-meeting. — Seventy- five 
Prisoners Converted. — Divine Nature of the Work 100 



I 



CONTENTS. IX 

CHAPTER XIII. PA6B 

His Imprisonment a School. — No Help for his Wife. — Denied 
herself Bread. — No Meals that Day. — Mrs. Murphy's sad Letter. 
— A bitteX ^Tight. — Released.— A complete Wreck. — The Meet- 
ing. — Am earnest Prayer. — Erects a Family Altar. — Fruit and 
Garments brought. — New Duties and Trials. — Mrs. Murphy's 
Death. — A sad Family. — The most important of Events. — Can- 
not but Work. — A complete Preparation for it 106 



PART III. 
A COMPLETE HISTORY OF THE MURPHY MOVEMENT. 

CHAPTER XIY. 

Murphy's Career as a Temperance Orator opens. — His Struggles and 
Progress in the Cause of Reform. — The Public recognizes him 
and his Mission. — The great Pittsburgh Revival. — Francis 
Murphy becomes a Household Name throughout the Land 117 

CHAPTER XY. 

Continuation of the Pittsburgh Work. — Murphy's Departure fol- 
lowed by continued Activity. — Features of the Reform 
Movement. — A Host of Followers and Co-laborers. — The Inaug- 
uration of the Movement at Philadelphia 161 

CHAPTER XVI. 

How the Work proceeded in the City of Brotherly Love. — Co- 
operation of the Ladies and the Churches. — Anecdotes, Ad- 
dresses and Personal Incidents 189 

CHAPTER XVIL 

Murphy's Speech at Columbus, Ohio. — The Work at Elmira, N. 
Y. — Interesting Scenes in the New York Revival. — Facts, In- 
cidents and Figures of the Results of the Murphy Movement 
I in the Southern Tier of Counties, growing out of the Elmira 
/ Work. — Francis Murphy's Speech at Chatauqua 220 

/ CHAPTER XVIII. 

7rancis Murphy among the Trojans. — Another grand season of 

Temperance Reform and Revival. — Forty thousand Pledge- 
\ takers in two months. — Striking Phases of the Campaign at 

Troy 266 

CHAPTER XIX. 

Further Speeches. — Facts and Miscellaneous Items connected with 
the Troy Movement. — Murphy's Co-laborers. — Estimate of the 
Man and his Work. 309 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER XX. page 

The Temperance Campaign at Springfield, Mass. — A Week's 
Labors and its Results. — Murphy and his Co-laborers in Mas- 
sachusetts. — Incidents of Conversion and Miscellaneous Items 
of Interest . . . ., 339 

CHAPTER XXI. 

The Temperance Cause in Washington, D. C. — Murphy and his 
Detractors. — Departure and Return of the Evangelist. — Inter- 
esting Characteristics of the Washington Work 378 



PART IV. 

THE LIFE AND WORK OF DR. HENRY A. REYNOLDS. 

CHAPTER XXII. 

The Early Career of a Remarkable Man. — The Occasion of his Re- 
form and Conversion. — First Organization of Reform Clubs. — 
Work in Maine and Massachusetts 417 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

Dr. Reynolds' Speech at the International Conference in Philadel- 
phia. — He Commences the Grand Michigan Work. — Progress 
and Success of a Phenomenal Movement. — Incidents, Speeches, 
and Statistics 443 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

The Temperance Work of Dr. Reynolds is Continued in Illinois. — 
His Efforts in that State. — The Chicago Revival. — Facts, 
Speeches, and Characteristics of the Reynolds Movement in the 
Prairie City. — Conclusion 476 



PART V. 

THE CRUSADE AND THE WOMAN'S CHRISTIAN TEMPER- 
ANCE UNION. 

CHAPTER XXV. 
The part of Woman in the Great Temperance Movement. — Origin 
and Progress of the Women's Crusade. — Features of the Agita- 
tion and its Beneficent Results 511] 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

The Crusade Spirit Settled and Crystallized in the Temperance 
Unions. — Growth and Full Organization of the Woman's Tem- 
perance Work. — Incidents and Figures. — Sketches of the Lead- 
ers of the Work : 567 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 



PAGE 

Francis Murphy ." Frontispiece. Z 

Capt. Cyrus Sturdivant 85\- 

The " Old Home," Pittsburgh 113 

A Lodging-House in ' ' Ramcat Alley " 187 

The Interior op the Model Coffee-House, Philadelphia. . 211 u 

Life in the Slums — A " Bucket Shop " 337 

The Road to Ruin — Interior of a Concert Saloon 379 

Dr. Henry A. Reynolds , 415 

Crazed with Rum 477 

Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer 510 

Mother Stewart, Leader of the Women's Movement 524 

Miss Frances E. Wlllard 565 

[xi] 



PART I. 



THE SUBJECT AS PRESENTED 

TO-DAY. 



THE TRUE PATH; 



GOSPEL TEMPERANCE 



PART I. 

THE SUBJECT AS PRESENTED TO-DAY. 

CHAPTER I. 

MR. MURPHY'S INFLUENCE. — HIS SUCCESS. LEADING CHARAC- 
TERISTICS. 

Francis Murphy is a surprise. Within a comparatively 
short time he has astonished the whole country. He has 
effectually gained the popular ear, and almost as readily won 
its heart. Certainly, his success is unequalled in the annals of 
reform. No other man has risen so high as a public bene- 
factor, and a real friend of the most degraded and wretched 
among men. 

Thus, already, his influence is wonderful. It is of a most 
commanding character. Not only do leading men, among 
ministers, merchants and others — of both great mental culture 
and wealth — subscribe to his plans and conform to all his most 
reasonable wishes ; but his influence extends to every grade 
and character of our people. It brings thousands of eager and 
devoted disciples to his feet. It goes beyond the bold and 

[13]' 



14 THE TRUE PATH ; 

impertinent stare of the public eye, and enters into the privacy 
and sanctity of the most humble homes. It finds firm anchor- 
age in the shadow-land of family trials, and carries with it the 
needful balm that issues only from Divine Truth and its 
association with human effort. It rests complacently in 
chambers where once sadness, fear and squalid misery held 
carnival. It establishes the true human helper and friend — ■ 
though but a pliant instrument in the Omnipotent hand — in 
the hearts of countless thousands of innocent and dependent 
ones, far outnumbering the fathers, husbands and brothers 
redeemed. 

The reason for all this is plain. It is in the fact that through 
his remarkable exertions there has been lifted from priceless 
souls the suffering of lives more intolerable than any death, 
and instead thereof the unbounded happiness dispensed that 
only those long denied it can fully experience. And it is fur- 
ther in the fact that the number of souls so reclaimed and 
freed are known to be legion. 

The speediest and most effective way to the interests, sym- 
pathies and affections of all intelligent people, is the salvation 
of its unfortunates. Great men have often become so by 
saving the lives of a few hundred or thousand persons. But 
here is an instance of a man, under God, saving thousands 
upon thousands of lives — both for time and eternity. People 
see and feel this, and are awakened to a sense of what is due 
such an one. 

Nor is this appreciation limited to the immediate fields of 
Mr. Murphy's labor. His influence is almost equally powerful 
and far-reaching in every community. His name — with his 
words of kindness and wisdom, and deeds of love — has been 
well heralded throughout our borders. It seems as if the 
whole nation of intemperance and vice is beginning to fret 
and heave from the enormous load his skill and struggles have 
put upon it. And it is plain that Christianity and morality 
have been stirred up to the importance of a hearty co-opera- 
tion with a plan that human wisdom can in no way condemn. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 15 

All feel the magnitude of the work now fairly inaugurated. 
Every atmosphere is full of the movement our hero has cham- 
pioned, The millions are only waiting — and anxiously — to 
know who, and what, he really is who has been able to so 
trouble the pools throughout our great social system. 

As already intimated, Mr. Murphy is a new star in the can- 
opy of our era — a brilliant gladiator in the arena of American 
life. lie is both a leader of great promise, and a general of 
prodigious victories. His success is assured for the time to 
come. He has taken firm root in the soil of the whole people. 
Even now the plant fills the air with the perfume of its blos- 
soms and fruit. All concede the fact that neither tongue nor 
pen can do justice to either the worker or his work. 

It is evident that more than one million persons have signed 
the Murphy pledge. Among these is a large proportion of 
men and women who were slaves to their appetites for strong 
drink. Not a few were confirmed drunkards and outcasts. 
This is a glorious record — one that should cause the people in 
the true path — they of the Gates of Zion — to be filled with 
pleasure and songs of thanksgiving. 

Through this unprecedented success — we may say, this ex- 
traordinary share of Divine blessing — the people are largely 
aglow with earnestness and enthusiasm. There is a disposition 
on the part of many to yield personal tastes and convictions, 
and subscribe to anything that will add to the general result. 
The tendency of the Church is toward more of prayer and 
labor and faith. And what may we not expect when the 
hearts of the Christian public are turned, from day to day, 
toward God — He who redeems more willingly than men 
receive his inestimable blessings. 

One of the things constantly developed in Mr. Murphy's 
labors is his unfaltering faith. He clearly has his convictions 
fixed upon the willingness of the Divine Spirit to aid every 
noble enterprise — especially that having for its purpose purely 
the elevation into spiritual life and activity of his unfortunate 
fellow-men. 



16 THE TEUE PATH ; 

He also has confidence in the fact that something of good, 
however small or flickering, exists down somewhere in every 
soul—something which can be fanned into a flame sufficient to 
light up the w T hole being and fill it with righteousness and 
truth. He has faith that, hard by the refreshing and enkind- 
ling power of the Almighty, on the one hand, and the feeble 
desires and latent sympathies of the fallen, on the other, there 
flows a continual stream of salvation ; and that a brotherly 
hand, warmed by a lovingJieart, may lift into useful manhood 
hosts of men who have long ceased to look for real friendship 
upon the earth. He has faith also that even one man, leaning 
heavily upon Christ, can accomplish more against evil than 
regiments of men depending solely upon themselves. 

Another important feature is his peculiar aptitude at per- 
suasiveness. By this none are harmed by him, in his ap- 
proaches, or addresses, whilst many are either surprised and 
impressed, or speedily won to him. 

The former method of badgering with innuendos, or even 
epithets, is disdained. Even the first show of unkindness is 
studiously avoided. No hostility is awakened in the breast of 
anyone. Threatening is not so much as thought of alongside 
the better and more potent principle of kindness— the child 
of love — that divine grace and attribute which moves worlds, 
and heaven itself. 

Persuasion is at once carefully and thoroughly employed, 
adhered to, and held, as the central motive power. Men are 
taken by the hand. This is the easy and sure way to the 
heart. And well might religion profit by this, in all its var- 
ious ecclesiastical methods, while striving for the glory of the 
Master. There is more hope for the reclamation of thousands 
in this way than in perhaps most of the denunciatory efforts 
of the pulpit and rostrum. There is much more of Christianity 
in the friendly shake of the hand than in many prayers offered. 
Mr. Murphy not only understands this, but seems to consider 
that a long and hearty shake of the hand and a short 
prayer is at no disadvantage over against a long prayer and a 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPEKAKCE. 17 

short and feeble act of fellowship. He moves toward the 
erring with a soul running over with a tenderness and persua- 
siveness that melts them down as effectually as are battalions 
and brigades decimated before the well-delivered leaden hail 
of an intrenched enemy. 

Thus, where there has been no desire for reformation he 
excites it. No matter how mean in appearance the man may 
be, he, the champion, grasps his hand and says, "My brother, 
come and assert your manhood ! Come ! You shall be 
saved !" And he comes — for a ray of hope, for the first time, 
touches the darkened soul. 

There is also presented to us in the man the very essential 
elements of personality — giving shape and even solidity to a 
sweeping popular enthusiasm. There can be no doubt as to 
the possession of this in a most extraordinary degree. He is 
at once captivating through his gift of eloquence, his most 
admirable earnestness, his impressive manner, his delicacy of 
feeling, his robust and enduring physical organism, and, 
withal, his singularly magnetic presence. All regard his per- 
sonal appeals as irresistible, and calculated to thoroughly 
imbue his hearers with the same spirit by which he is himself 
moved. 

Thoroughness is seen, too, in all Mr. Murphy does. His 
mind not only expands, in proportion to the demands of his 
soul, in the great movement, H ut his plans and their fulfillment 
are distinguished for precision and effectiveness. Nothing is 
done loosely or carelessly ; not a man is allowed to escape 
him, if in any way adapted to the work. Is one a good 
speaker ? has he an important and telling experience ? has he 
beon distinguished among the intemperate, or frequenters of 
the drinking saloon, or groggery ? At once he is pushed to the 
front, constrained to tell his sad story and its rejoicef ul sequel 
to the thousands, and then sent into the field to imitate the 
great leader in urging the necessity for, and value of, Gospel 
temperance. 

Often men have signed the pledge, and then walked away 
from philanthropic workers, as if all was done that it was pos- 



18 THE TRUE PATH; 

sible for them to do. That act ended, the signer was left to 
himself, and a world of snares and false friends. No interest 
was taken in them, and they were not encouraged to keep 
their solemn pledge by subsequent words or efforts. 

Not so is Mr. Murphy's work done. Men are clothed, fed, 
employed, encouraged, and drilled to faithfulness. Thus 
appeal after appeal has been made to the public. The leader 
himself has gone to private homes, soliciting apparel for his 
converts. His self-sacrificing devotion has driven home to the 
great public heart the fact of his genuine humanitarianism ; 
and the community of rum-venders and rum-drinkers have 
silently bowed their heads before him. 

One other peculiarity requires, at our hands, a few reflec- 
tions. It is that of a deep, personal experience. This has 
made Mr. Murphy bold, strong and shrewd. It is the band 
that encircles his soul, and whatever of gifts and graces he 
possesses. He was saved from a terrible end. His redemption 
released him from the worst of foes. His tender nature and 
sympathies were caught up by the power of the Holy Spirit. 
His prayers carried him from a familiar degradation to peace 
and happiness in believing. His very cruelties to others, 
especially the objects of his love, brought to him a more per- 
sistent interest and affection in their behalf. 

Through this last characteristic, Mr. Murphy stepped out 
not only upon the broad platform, and into the pure air of 
universal manhood, but — as by an unseen impetus- — began to 
ascend the heights by which he might more perfectly measure 
his privileges and opportunities, and from which he might call 
to him those of like perils and misfortunes. 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 19 



CHAPTER II. 

MR. MURPHY'S DIFFICULTIES. — INFLUENCES AGAINST HIM. — A 

WARNING. 

It is well that the world has its generous acid noble natures 
which press beyond the narrow confines of the cynics and 
fault-finders — a class seldom pleased with anything unless they 
do it themselves, although eager to enjoy the good opinions of 
others. It is well that there are men who consider and re- 
member their duty to God and humanity ; who are willing to 
be held up to the contempt of some so that others may be 
profited, and who are ready to endure as good soldiers, for the 
honor of the name of Christ. It even seems well, also, that 
there are at times difficulties before such valiant defenders of 
truth, by the overcoming of which we are led to know that 
the wisdom of man is as foolishness before Him who gives to 
all their talents, and whose spiritual gifts and blessings are 
greatly above the highest advantages of a carnal nature. 

Thus are we brought to ourselves. Thus does God humble 
the lofty and instruct the despised. And thus, while we see 
hundreds of the most learned and skilled from distinguished 
"Alma Maters" pass through lives full of golden opportu- 
nities, without acquiring a name beyond the slender fields of 
their professional or business engagements, we are now and 
then amazed at the splendid acts of such as have risen from 
obscurity and disadvantages — as have asked no mercy of the 
proud wave above the surface, and yet transcended them all. 

Few persons, having such obstacles before them as had 
Francis Murphy, ever conceive of, or attempt, great popular 



20 THE TEUE PATH; 

movements. Fewer still meet with any respectable success in 
the attempts made. They who succeed, however — and 
especially who do so signally and continuously — must be great, 
find them what and where you will. God reigns among men, 
and no one can accomplish such results, unless he is a chosen 
vessel — having the peculiar characteristics of mind and soul 
most essential, however they may be hidden from human ken. 

It is neither an easy nor common thing for men, having the 
advantages of influence and education, to rise to prominence 
in oar large communities. But for men to come from the 
depths of debauchery and the prison house, and without so 
much as an ordinary mental outfit, and then hew their way up 
to a place alongside the ablest and most distinguished of our 
citizens, is truly marvellous, and demands our attention and 
respect. 

It may be objected by some, that such men are only great, 
because they meet the tastes, views, feelings and training of 
the crowd. Be it so. The most distinguished of our country- 
men, generally, in all departments of usefulness, have become 
so by consulting the requirements of the masses. Great minds 
must bend to those around and beneath them, or their very 
greatness becomes a source of reproach. • Truly popular men 
are more surely great than those who despise the opinions of 
the world, simply because of a consciousness of their superior 
personal attainments. 

There is a greatness that the schools cannot give — that the 
most exquisite preparation cannot procure — and that rises in 
intrinsic merit and importance above all mind culture. It is 
born, and is somewhat of a rare production. It has to do with 
the soul. 

Education might have raised a mind and soul like Mr. Mur- 
phy's high up among the people with but little effort. But 
then his usefulness might have been thwarted. Difficulties 
make some men all the greater — often much more useful. His 
strength is seen more prominently in the indifference with 
which he treats the very qualification held to be so essential. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 21 

He doubtless knows of his misfortune— if such it be — perhaps 
feels it for the moment ; but then led, as by a superhuman 
impulse, and a keen appreciation of his duty in behalf of suf- 
fering and erring humanity, he springs forward, appeals 
pointedly to men, catches their ears, wins their hearts, and 
holds them till he slays the enemy of their souls ; and then 
anoints and bandages them for their new existence. 

The questions have been recently asked, "Whether men, 
having little more than dissolute lives to commend them to 
the public, are the proper persons to be recognized as leaders 
in important public movements ? " — " Whether wickedness 
should be made a vestibule to popularity?" — "Whether those 
of offensive antecedents should not be kept upon the stool of 
repentance for a goodly season,, and held at a discount in mat- 
ters of general interest ?" 

In answer to such inquiries, we scarcely know what to say. 
We would not utter anything having the appearance of 
unkindness in it. And yet we feel a deep sense of indignation 
in an attempt at their consideration. We regard them as an 
impeachment of the common sense of our people generally. 
Yea, more ! — they seem to be an arraignment of the govern- 
ment of God among men ! 

When our Lord called Saul, the " chief of sinners," He did 
no more than He is doing to-day, both in the Church and out 
of it. And when He does so call, shall men shake their heads 
impiously and declare that wickedness with Jehovah is at a 
premium ? 

We will use a homely illustration, and urge, that there are 
very many tame crows sitting cozily and lazily upon the fence, 
which are only innocent of the decaying carcass of sin because 
it did not lie within easy range of their flight. Perhaps if 
they had tasted it, they would enjoy more of active usefulness ; 
would desert their complacent and self-important habits ; 
would entertain more charitable opinions of the world around 
them ; and would more actively and truthfully engage in the 
great conflict of life. The worst sinners have been made so 



22 THE TRUE PATH ; 

by the very soul qualities that — once subjected to the light 
and heat of God's Spirit — make them the best and most noble 
Christians. 

Again, we think it is no reflection upon the educational in- 
terests of our day to say that sound, practical sense flourishes 
most outside the range of our more prominent schools of learn- 
ing. Nor do we violate the sentiments of the most experienced 
of intelligent Christians, when we say that about the worst 
men in the church are those who sit in judgment over others — 
following simply their own uncharitable opinions, and seeking 
to punish accordingly — taking the whole business out of the 
hands of Him who hath said, " I will repay." The influences 
against him have evidently escaped the attention of Mr. Mur- 
phy. From remarks recently made by him, it is certain that, 
in his hurried and resistless labors, he has not seen the indif- 
ference and obstacles set up by various influences, the moral 
support of which he should have had. 

We would first direct attention, under this caption, to the 
secular press— that most notable power in the direction of 
either interesting and arousing the people, or checking and 
neutralizing public movements. It has to a considerable extent 
exercised remarkable caution in this entire temperance warfare. 
The reasons for this we can well understand. Its interests have 
often been at' stake. It has, perhaps, done all we could reason- 
ably expect. But we are quite sure it might have done abun- 
dantly more, had it assumed the independence characteristic 
of its course upon many other subjects. In numerous instances 
in the Middle, as also in the Eastern and Western States, it 
has yielded its favor grudgingly, and as if from the merest 
compulsion. To these, of course, there have been not a few 
honorable exceptions. We know of none which have been out- 
spoken in their opposition ; yet many have failed in any moral 
support. 

Mr. Murphy has not given this his attention as others have 
done. And he has been sincere, doubtless, in his declarations 
that the newspapers were able to render him helpless at any 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKAJ5TCE. 23 

time. But we cannot for a moment believe that Francis Mur- 
phy, in the hands of the Blessed Spirit of God, could be made 
helpless, although the combined efforts of newspaperdom were 
levelled squarely against him. At second thought, he will 
agree with us in this particular. But Mr. Murphy is kind, 
He hits at no one except to favor. He knows the power of 
the press, and is even grateful for its silence, where it has 
avoided support. But there are thousands throughout our 
nation who will hear of the kind words of the orator in regard 
to the press, and then conclude that he said all he could say 
from the kindly swellings of his soul, and could risk little or 
nothing more. 

There are able and noble men in the great editorial frater- 
nity of our country; those who are eager to support every good 
enterprise ; who have rejoiced down in their hearts at Mr. 
Murphy's success ; and who doubtless have sympathetically 
watched the tide of general favor, as it rose up wave after 
wave around the champion, and then dashed from the centres 
and strongholds of the movement and washed over the sub- 
urban, and more remote districts, controlling and converting 
thousands. Some of them have given full reports at times, 
and uttered no word of disfavor. But in numerous instances, 
it is commonly reported and accepted among the people, 
their influence has not been what might and should have been. 

In addition to this, some influential religious newspapers, in 
various parts, have thus far largely failed in their support of 
Mr. Murphy. What shall we say of these, after the foregoing 
remarks ? If the secular press has been at fault, what have 
the Church papers not done, which, by their silence or covert 
thrusts, have been in the way of the good work ? They seem 
to have forgotten that Temperance and Christianity are of the 
same household — having the same Author, and Father, and 
divine relationship ; that they live and labor together ; that 
they are united by indissoluble ties, upon which their lives 
equally depend ;, that unitedly they go out upon the great 
mission of alleviating human misery ; that they are heaven- 



24 THE TRUE PATH ; 

appointed, and Jehovah-instructed, for the lifting up and 
sundering of the network of sin ; and that with the trials and 
misfortunes of one, come suffering and confusion to the other. 
They are both as needful to the success of every Christian 
Church, of whatever name, as air and water are to the susten- 
ance of the human body. 

The ministry in our cities has done good service by taking 
Mr. Murphy and his converts by the hand, and giving them 
countenance and support. The leader has invoked the help of 
the watchmen in Zion, and has received it. His gratitude 
therefor has been unbounded. Yet there are those who have 
antagonized him in his great work. What their reasons for 
such a course have been, we cannot understand. Evidently 
they have seen that the power of the Almighty is freely on 
the side of the weak vessel — one heretofore full of ignorance 
and sin. Because, perhaps, they are unable to shut their eyes 
to this last feature, they forsooth resist Him by whom all 
victory is assured. They appear to turn away from every true 
and just impulse of a religious nature, and shield themselves 
behind the false dispositions and tastes of a depraved and 
flimsy social world. 

A few sentences may well be employed here as notes of 
warning to such of the ministry as hold in disfavor the Murphy 
enterprise. For years, not a few of our churches have become 
cold and negligent of the more responsible duties resting upon 
them. Thus, in our large cities and throughout the land, the 
Standard of Christ has frequently been lowered under a 
system of theological training, recognizing more the doctrines 
of men — and the need of a successful defense of views, in- 
volving the peculiar tenets of certain religious systems — than 
the high and holy doctrines of God. We have watched the 
conflict for some time between human philosophy, and the 
wisdom of the Divine Spirit. Logic, controversy and schemes 
have resulted freely from our late methods of seminary train- 
ing, while the unction from above — so all-essential to true 
Christianity — has been neglected. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 25 

Under such circumstances, God calls from the ranks of the 
debauched and uneducated, the men who, through His power, 
accomplish as much in a few short months, as professedly able 
ministers do in a life-time. Evangelists, brought up under the 
rays of the eternal sun, are suddenly sent out. They charm 
and electrify the people, and reflect the truths of the Gospel 
abroad into their hearts. They become the whips in the hands 
of God, by which the churches are punished, — or, rather, the 
goads by which the organized and regular means of salvation 
are incited to better and greater efforts. Therefore, it is not 
becoming or wise for those in the pulpit to question, criticise 
and deny the correctness and expediency of such labors as 
have recently startled us. 

We recognize all good as from God, and especially the kind 
that carries the Gospel to the crowds, and Christ to the hearts 
of the people. The feeble and foolish declaration so fre- 
quently put forth, that there is no permanence to such efforts 
as have distinguished Mr. Murphy and his co-laborers, is not 
only erroneous and evil in effect, but contrary to the spirit of 
the Gospel. It is ours to do all we can for the common good 
— to preach all of the truth — to lose no opportunity of confer- 
ring blessing upon every condition and degree of sinners. 
Even the method is, we apprehend, of minor consequence — so 
that we violate no plain law of Scripture. God will take care 
of the balance. If we, in good faith, save men for a season 
from sin, it will secure us as much reward, as if the dews of 
God's grace, and the sun of the inner heavens had watered and 
warmed them all through life. It is not ours to consider the 
permanence of the thing, or to sit in judgment over times and 
circumstances which have not transpired, any more than it is 
right for the farmer to refuse to put his crops into the earth 
because he believes there will be a plague or a drought. We 
are commanded to plow, sow and water. We are to leave 
the increase with God. The duty — the labor — belongs to 
man ; the result belongs solely to Him who knoweth all 
things, and whose wisdom in not given^to another. 
2 



26 THE TEUE PATH; 



CHAPTER III. 

PREVIOUS TEMPERANCE MOVEMENTS. — DIFFERENT OPINIONS 
CURRENT. AT THE ROOTS. 

Before considering the Gospel temperance plan of Mr. 
Murphy, it may be well— for the information of the reader — 
at this point, to consider, as succinctly as possible, the history 
of the various temperance movements in our own country. 

In the year 1651, by direction of a public meeting, 
the town of East Hampton, L. I., arranged itself against 
drunkenness, and a little later limited the amount of liquor 
to be sold. In 1676 the legislature of the State of Virginia 
passed a prohibitory act. In 1700 steps were taken at different 
points against the use of liquor at funerals. In 1777 the Con- 
tinental Congress urged upon the State governments the 
prevention of "the pernicious practice of distilling grain." 
In 1789 the first temperance society was formed in Litchfield 
Co., Conn. In 1795 Dr. Rush advocated total abstinence. 
In 1797 a religious opposition to the use of liquors made 
its appearance among the Methodists, Presbyterians and other 
sects. In 1805 the Philadelphia paper makers formed a tem- 
perance association. In 1808 on account of the alarming 
increase of drunkenness, a Union Temperance Organization was 
effected in New York. In 1811 reform began in Philadelphia. 
In 1813 was organized the Massachusetts Society for the Pre- 
vention of Intemperance. In 1825, the advocacy of total ab- 
stinence again became somewhat formidable. In 1826 the 
American Temperance Society of Boston was organized ; 
shortly after which societies sprung up everywhere throughout 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 27 

the country. In 1827 medical societies declared against 
liquors ; religious assemblies declaimed against them ; and 
prominent advocates of total abstinence appeared. Before the 
close of 1827 two hundred and twenty-two societies were 
formed, having thirty thousand members. In 1829 one thousand 
societies existed, and one hundred thousand men were pledged 
against liquors. In 1831 there were twenty-two hundred local 
societies and one hundred and seventy thousand members, 
and the question of license was pressed to the ballot. In 
1832 the secretaries of war and the navy of the United 
States substituted coffee and sugar for liquors in the forts, 
campsj garrisons, navy yards and vessels. In 1833 meetings 
were general ; the first regular total abstinence society was 
formed ;. a Congressional Society was organized, with Gen- 
eral Cass as president ; and the number of societies had in- 
creased to five thousand, having a membership of one and a 
quarter million. In this year, also, the first National Tem- 
perance Society meeting was held at Independence Hall, in 
Philadelphia. In 1834 the general government sanctioned 
prohibition. In 1837 a prohibitory law was offered and de- 
feated in Maine, and Neal Dow began to be conspicuous. In 
1838 several States passed stringent liquor laws. In 1839 Mis- 
sissippi passed a " one gallon law," and Illinois a local 
option bill. This year news of the work of Father Mathew, 
in Ireland, reached our country, and caused great rejoicing 
among temperance people. On July 4, Boston held a Cold 
Water Jubilee. In 1840 six inebriates inaugurated " The 
Washingtonians " in Baltimore. The effect of this society was 
marvellous. Reformed men arose everywhere. Two of these 
visited various States and obtained thirty-four thousand sig- 
natures. The supposition is that one hundred and fifty thou- 
sand pledges were obtained from this movement. 

A great work began in 1842, in the organization of 
the Sons of Temperance, the influence and power of which has 
cintinued until the present. In, addition to this the Order of 
Reeha'bites was introduced from England, and gained con- 



28 THE TEUE PATH ; 

siderable favor. John B. Gough, the eloquent, began his 
labors, of reform also during this year. In 1845 the Templar 
Society began its existence. In 1846 Maine secured a pro- 
hibitory law. During this year the Order of Cadets of Tem- 
perance was originated, and was followed by the Good Sa- 
maritans in New York. In 1848 New Hampshire and other 
States obtained prohibition. In 1849 Father Mathew landed 
in New York, through whom was founded the present Total 
Abstinence Brotherhood. In 1852 the Maine law had its 
birth. In 1853, a World's Temperance Convention was held 
in New York. In 1856 the American Juvenile Temperance 
Society was formed. In 1859, the total abstinence society, 
called the " Dashaways," was organized by four young men in 
San Francisco. In 1860 the Temperance Flying Artillery was 
instituted in Chicago. In 1865 the National Temperance 
Society was begun, with Hon. W. E. Dodge as president. In 
the same year, the California Temperance Legion, and Mary- 
land Abstinence League appeared, and Congress excluded 
liquor from the capitol and grounds. In 1866 the Pennsyl- 
vania State Temperance Union was started. In 1868 the 
Friends of Temperance was begun in Virginia. During the 
same year the Young Men's Christian Association became first 
identified with the temperance movement. In 1869 the Ladies' 
Reform was organized in Ohio. In 1871 Total Abstinence 
Catholic Societies were formed. In 1873 the Women's Cru- 
sade in the West came into prominence, and soon developed 
into the Women's Christian Temperance Union. In 1875 two 
National Temperance Conventions met and effected consider- 
able legislation. In 1876, at Independence Hall, a grand 
International Temperance Convention w T as held. Since this, 
and especially during the present year, much has been done 
through the evangelistic efforts of D. L. Moody and others. 
But nothing approximating to the present movement has ever 
transpired in this, or, perhaps, any other country. 

The Murphy plan is a new one, not theoretically, or even, 
perhaps, practically, but in its arrangement, methods and 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 29 

scope. Heretofore, the alarming increase of intemperance, 
debauchery and crime has given rise to much of serious 
thought and effort on the part of prominent Christians and 
philanthropists. No stone has been left unturned in the 
search for a remedy ; no expenditure of treasure spared in 
attempts to shield the weak and helpless ; no influences with- 
held from the devotee of the poisoned chalice looking to his 
liberation from the fangs of the serpent within it. There has 
been much of anxiety, counselling, and debate, as well as labor. 
And, as any one would readily conclude, there has been an end- 
less variety of opinions as to the most proper and effectual 
course to pursue. 

On the part of a great number of persons, legal enactments 
are the only hope for any permanent or thorough success. 
. The infliction of severe penalties upon all w T ho become 
intoxicated is esteemed by them the sure way to an abandon- 
ment of the evil. Having failed to overcome the great com- 
binations formed by men who traffic in alcoholic and malt 
liquors — and in wretched, undone souls — and fearing any 
further attempts against those of the " first cause," in this 
national evil, as fruitless, on account of the support and pro- 
tection secured by legislation — they have turned upon the 
poor creature of his appetite, and would add inhumanity to 
misery ; in other words, using the legal phrase, they would 
liberate " the party of the first part," on account of his 
strength of purse, and his hold upon the good-will of the 
crowd, and visit his act upon one who is scarcely a "particeps 
criminis " — but little more than a poor dupe. In a word, they 
would kill the tree «by lopping off its outer twigs. 

Many others would go further and deeper, in their on- 
slaughts upon the evil, and would cut at the trunk of the tree, 
and, if possible, sever it from its roots. They would war 
against the tavern and saloon-keepers, and, through ceaseless 
struggling at the ballot box, and with our law makers, securing 
most stringent limitations and barriers, or, further still, a 
prohibitory law, would annihilate the "middle-man." Their 



30 THE TEUE PATH 



purposes transpired in the Murphy awakening, and have.fairly 
come to the surface at this stage of the movement. They 
denounce the seller as a blot upon society's face, a moral leper 
in the community, a disgrace to our age, and as one of the 
worst, and most to be despised of men. 

Between these warriors in the cause of prohibition, and Mr. 
Murphy, there is considerable variance, if not dissension. Mr. 
Murphy claims — and he speaks from his own experience — that 
there are thousands of men in the liquor business who have 
engaged in it because of a seeming necessity; that they have 
good heads and hearts ; that they are capable of becoming 
ornaments among men ; that they are not degraded down in 
their souls ; and that they are no little sinned against in 
having hurled at them the opprobrious epithets of prohibi- 
tionists. 

Therefore, while the one side would resort to unrelenting 
and vigilant legal means, the other would take the purest and 
broadest spirit of our Christian religion, and aim at the con- 
victions. The prohibitionists carry in their hands the law. 
Mr. Murphy, disgusted with the moral faithlessness and pusil- 
lanimity of law makers, has seized upon the Gospel. Of 
course, our sympathies are with Mr. Murphy. We believe, 
yea, we know, from no little of association with Christians, 
that when the law fails, the Gospel most effectually triumphs. 

We cannot agree to- the assertion that all who traffic in 
liquors are the worst and most despicable of men. Their 
business is enormously wicked, doubtlessly, on account 
of many things belonging to, and growing out of it. 
But the dealer does not so regard <it, and is often 
blind to the injury he does to the cause of God and of 
humanity. He often does not see the terrors of drunkenness, 
as they appear in the lives and the families of his customers, 
and even in the prison-homes of his victims — unless, indeed, 
He becomes the victim himself. This was the case with Mr. 
Murphy. Then, when he accidentally awakens to his true 
situation, he is appalled ; his soul is stirred ; he abhors the 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 31 

life consequent upon his nefarious pursuit ; he catches at new 
desires ; he seeks the only guidance known to man, and 
humbly falls down before Gocl. Thus it was, also, with Mr. 
Murphy. And before the prohibition school can fasten upon 
the average Christian heart its views and claims, and .make 
believe that the liquor-venders are a worthless, God-forsaken 
body, they must hide away the double character of Francis 
Murphy, the liquor-seller, drunkard, and prisoner, and Francis 
Murphy, the hero and champion of the grandest temperance 
reform that has ever visited the centuries. 

Far be it from us to attempt to elevate the business of the 
men who contribute more than all others to the misery of our 
race. We could not do it, and would flee the very thought. 
But it is always God-like to elevate men. It is well to degrade 
the thing that is evil ; it is error to degrade the men that do 
evil. Lift up Christ in all things ; and in obedience to His 
plain teachings, do good to all men. Never hate, despise or 
condemn, while the blood of the atonement is sufficient to 
make as pure as wool the crimson-dyed sinner. 

There is yet one other class of temperance men. They 
maintain that it is necessary for us to go beyond both twigs 
and branches and trunk, and dig out the whole tree — roots and 
all. They object not only to the license system in toto, but 
a're opposed to the distillation and brewing of liquors, and 
would have severe measures against their manufacture. That 
this is striking at the roots of the evil, none will question. 
But effort in this direction, under our present system of gov- 
ernment, would seem like endeavoring to dry up the sea by 
drainage. Our legislators are, to a considerable extent, not 
only patrons of the tavern-keepers, but dependent upon their 
favor for a continuance in office. They know, many of them, 
that if it were not for the interests of rum they would never 
be allowed to fill" their positions ; that it is by the way of the 
bar, and the toddy, they have come, and that everything 
aimed at these is, to them, a deeply personal affair. How can 
they break faith with their only friends? We can under- 



32 THE TRUE PATH; 

stand how this would be suicide with them, although they fail 
to see how the suicide would be a great blessing to the public. 

In this connection, we cannot but remark that the 
present method of holding elections, in many of our 
cities and populous districts, at hotels, taverns and little 
groggeries, is an outrage upon Christianity and morality. We 
care little for the plea that our laws require such places to 
be closed on election day. The compromise is, perhaps, an 
improvement upon the old system, but is only a slight con- 
cession on the side of the evil. What was done publicly is 
now only done privately. No amount of excuse can justify it 
in a single instance. It would be more profitable to the tax- 
payer either to have small buildings erected for the purpose, 
or to remunerate families, having reputation for temperance, 
for the use of their homes, than to continue a means by which 
the friends of intemperance obtain dominance in local govern- 
ment. For we remember that these make fifty per cent, of 
our insane, sixty-five per cent, of our paupers, seventy-five per 
cent, of our murderers, eighty per cent, of our criminals, ninety- 
five per cent, of our vicious youth, and send one every six min- 
utes into a drunkard's grave, or nearly one hundred thousand 
precious souls a year ! 

How shameful, then, that our ballot-boxes, designed to be 
kept sacredly pure, are frequently placed in the houses 
whence vice, corruption and drunkenness proceed ; where the 
fiery fluid that steals away reason is freely dispensed ; where 
the most profligate and malicious in the community spend 
their hours ; and where there is every incitement to fraud, riot 
and murder. And to such points Christian ministers, and all 
honest and good citizens are compelled to go, if they would 
exercise the right and duty of franchise ! Compelled to 
breathe an air vitiated by the peculiar odor of the still 
product, as well as by the many hot breaths, alike poisoned by 
rum, cheap tobacco and profanity. 

We fancy it would be prudent for the intelligent women of 
our land to operate loudly and boldly against this evil, in 



OR, aOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 33 

view of its possible effect upon their fathers, husbands and 
brothers, before seeking to tread, themselves, with ballot in 
hand, the miserable purlieus of the spot where revelry is most 
unblushing and degenerate. 

How can it be otherwise than that liquor-dealers and their 
friends should feel themselves to be the true custodians of the 
voice and will of the people, while such things are permitted 
to continue? How can we be sustained at the power of rum 
in our midst, and the inability of men to overcome the 
influence of organized distillers, when our highest privileges 
as citizens are at the mercy of the retailers of the fiery 
stuff? How can we expect anything else than legislators, 
councilmen, and alderman and magistrates of corrupt and 
bacchanalian sympathies and tendencies ? 

By all means, then, let the influential classes who are 
opposed, both to the license system and the manufacture 
of liquors, go consistently to work, and strive for a divorce 
of rum and the ballot-box, before looking to the offspring of 
these our legislators for a destruction of the foundation of the 
whole fabric of King Alcohol. They have been trying to legis- 
late against the distiller and dealer for over half a cen- 
tury and have steadily failed. More rum is consumed in 
our country now than ever before. Perhaps, if these extremists 
had pursued the course referred to, their cause might have 
been victorious long since. 

All parties holding to the various opinions considered have 
done something of good — must have contributed somewhat to 
the success of sobriety among us. But they have fallen short, 
doubtless, of their ability in the premises. Not a few, of our 
wisest and clearest thinkers, have admitted that none have 
proven themselves equal to the demands of our times. 
2* 



34, THE TKUE PATH J 



CHAPTER IV. 

gospel temperance. — opposition of christians. the term 

as used by mr. murphy. example and teaching of 

christ. — Christ's wine not intoxicating. — mr. murphy 
consistent. necessity for gospel temperance, 

Mr. Murphy has been thoroughly convinced of the weak- 
ness and ineffectualness of the methods heretofore resorted to. 
Another must be sought. He, himself, had failed of reforma- 
tion before invoking the aid of Divine power. Herein was 
the successful way. It was the true path to him, and would 
surely be to everyone. He had not the strength of himself, 
but God gave him freely of grace, and he was thoroughly 
brought to hate the beastly liquid he once loved. This must 
be made plain to others. His way was not open to the pulpit, 
but he could go upon the rostrum and appeal to his fellow- 
man. He could take his own simple narrative of wretchedness 
and crime, and of his final salvation at the foot of the cross. 
This he would do. The Gospel of the Son of God had brought 
him to temperance and peace, and now he would lift up a 
banner that he well knew would save to the uttermost, that of 
Gospel temperance. 

Counselling the erring, appealing to whatever of manhood 
remained, inducing them to sign the pledge, assuring them of 
all needful support from Jehovah, pointing them to the wide 
mercies of a present Saviour, and turning their attention to a 
life of prayer and faith, would be the effort of his life, and 
would necessarily have triumph. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 35 

God would thus not only enable the individual convert to 
stand above his appetite, but would also give encouragement 
and power to every means put forth for the rescue of others — 
in a word, would fill the cause with His presence and blessing. 
Thus he might become an instrument of great good ; perhaps, 
be made a power against evil ; might gather into a new plan 
of reform the masses in the community \ and might makie, 
through love and kindness, to the living, active souls within 
the grasp of Satan, their wicked practices and avocation more 
unpopular and offensive than ever. 

The resolution was taken. His family were informed of it. 
He plainly and in brief sentences revealed to them the 
thoughts of his mind and desires of his soul ; and they could 
not but acquiesce in the generous and noble purposes, so new 
and strange were they to all they had previously experienced. 
His soul was evidently on fire, for his language had become 
thoroughly warmed, and his tones and earnestness reached 
their hearts. They fell in freely with his sentences of irresist- 
ible eloquence. The giant was rising to his task. 

Thus the temperance of Mr. Murphy was of the Spirit. 
When a man becomes a sincere Christian, he is alive to the 
importance of having others accept his Saviour ; he has a 
hungering for souls. The reformation of this man was com- 
plete, being accomplished through the Gospel.. The Lord had 
revealed Himself to him in this way. He desired to know or 
teach no other method. 

And Mr. Murphy has been consistent throughout. He has 
encountered strong and able advocates of other methods, but 
he has successfully withstood all their views, prejudices and 
influences. He adheres to the one plan. He will follow it 
against all opposition. He regards it as the true path — the 
Lord's way — and it were violence and crime to leave it. More 
than this, he is conscious that he has the Divine help, while 
faithful to it, and believes that his success would cease were 
he to forsake it. In this he is wise, as the history of all other 
plans abundantly shows. 



36 THE TRUE PATH ; 

When the Washingtonians came into existence, in 1840, 
multitudes gathered around them. In a short time they 
numbered two hundred and fifty thousand. The country was 
largely influenced by the movement. Christians were deeply 
interested in its behalf, and the aisles and vestibules of houses 
of worship, as well as the street corners and all gathering 
places, were the scenes of animated converse and jubilant 
demonstrations. The Spirit of the Almighty was plainly seen 
in the work. The effect upon the whole public mind was 
unmistakable. The Church approached the great work. 

But, at this juncture, the members of the organization 
became narrowed through regarding man, and his extended 
labors, and forgetting God. Thus, speedily the Gospel was 
separated from the movement, in deference to those who were 
unchristian in their views. The Bible, the cross and prayer 
were ignored. Then came a sudden and inglorious failure. 
This result has attended a similar procedure in a lesser 
degree, in various other attempts. And we believe that dis- 
comfiture must quickly come in all instances in w r hich the 
power is other than of God. The will of man is weak in itself. 
His pledge is not sure. If he fails to look up to the only 
Helper, he will surely be brought to shame, if not to the com- 
plete power of the enemy. 

There is a circumstance in connection with Gospel temper- 
ance to which we believe it necessary to allude. It is in the 
fact that it is opposed by some who are confessedly Christians, 
and members of orthodox churches. This appears to us, at a 
glance, as unaccountably strange. 

It is evident that the Gospel is of God ; that it reveals the 
mind and will of our Creator ; and that it is good and true, 
though everything else be false. What objection, then, can a 
consistent believer offer to Gospel Temperance? If Gospel 
teachings are right, why not its temperance. 

" But," says the objector, " we do not object to Gospel tem- 
perance — only to the term as used by Murphy school. In 
their hands it is a misnomer. We believe the Gospel way to 



0E 5 GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 37 

be the true path — but we cannot accept the Murphy absti- 
nence way as such." 

Now, let us frankly look as these objections. The Gos- 
pel of Christ enjoins temperance. Here none will dissent. 
Temperance in all things is needful. But it goes further than 
this. It enforces, at times, abstinence. It requires of us that 
we be absolutely separated from anything by which we cause 
a brother to offend. When we, therefore, do that which leads 
another to sin, we are far from excusable. In such case, if we 
simply taste, we are intemperate. The Gospel shows us that 
not only is the excess or abuse of many things intemperance, 
but also the very use by which we cause stumbling. For this 
reason Paul declares that if the use of meat causes his brother 
to offend, then will he never eat it. Therefore, we affirm that 
the sin is not in the thing itself, it is .simply in its injury to 
ourselves and others. ' 

We are morally and religiously bound to conform to the 
things that are most expedient, both for ourselves and others. 
To nothing will this question of expediency more fully and 
potently apply than to temperance. Strong drink is the bane 
of our country ; is carrying our young men of best promise by 
thousands into the ranks of sin, that they may be hurried be- 
yond the reach of truth as affectually as was Uriah put away 
at the command of his unfaithful king. All believers are es- 
pecially subject to the restraint imposed by the Gospel — which 
but reflects the safeguards enjoined in even the Old Dispensa- 
tion. The whole law is clearly authority for a total separation 
from intoxicating beverages, and reveals to us the important 
truth that there is greater need of special efforts against in- 
temperance than nearly all other sins. 

Individual rights cease to be such the moment they ignore 
the rights of others. The net- work of society is as thoroughly 
interwoven and identical as that of a great seine, which, 
when there is a single rent anywhere, is more or less impaired ; 
or, is as sympathetic in its structure as the human body, which, 
when injured in any part, is made to suffer as a whole. There- 



38 THE TRUE PATH; 

fore the entire body of society, in view of the blighting effects 
of intemperance, and the highly inebriating properties of mod- 
ern drinks, has the highest and most sacred reasons for requir- 
ing a strict enforcement of the abstinence features of Mr. 
Murphy's Gospel temperance. 

"But," says the objector, "our Saviour doubtless used wine, 
permitted others to use it, and even turned water into good 
wine," — emphasizing with an air of satisfaction the word 
" good." We will not attempt, at this particular juncture, an 
argument as to the kind of wine used under the cognizance of 
Christ. We will, to gratify those of opposite views, just for 
a few moments, allow what they claim — that it was alcoholic, 
or fermented wine. What does that prove ? Our Lord was 
hunted and watched throughout His ministry by His enemies, 
who failed at any time to detect a flaw in His acts or character. 
Had He shown the least fondness, or favor, for wine, beyond 
what prudence or unimpeachable sobriety admitted, He would 
have been quickly assailed therefor, and the circumstances 
have been put upon record. Had He done anything contrary 
to the temperance principles set forth throughout His Gospel, 
He would have lost His hold upon those who thronged His 
sacred person, and would have caused their hearts to be filled 
with doubt and unbelief. 

On the other hand, where can we find more pronounced 
declarations against intemperance than in the New Dispensa- 
tion ? By drunkenness we become guilty of the whole law ; 
by it we are shut out of the kingdom of His glory ; and by it 
we are shut out, by the concurrent action of the universal 
Christian Church in the ages, of the assemblies of His saints 
upon the earth. 

Certainly, no evil has ever resulted from what Christ did in 
relation to this entire subject. We have every reason * to 
believe that no drunkenness, or wickedness came from the 
festivities of Cana ; that their effects on those who hung upon 
the lips and steps of the Master, were harmless ; and that the 
surroundings, the custom of the times, and the wine itself 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 39 

were all such as to forbid anything baneful. Any other con- 
clusion is at variance with the known character and word of 
Christ. 

We know, as is often urged, that the juice of the grape is 
" the creature of God." We do not regard it as any more so 
than the gold and silver and copper. He has not intended 
their use in such a way as to create evil desires in the human 
heart. If such juice is taken into our bodies simply from the 
love of it, and because of an evil appetite — which means 
because of its alcoholic effects, and without some purely sani- 
tary, otherwise, good and important' purpose ; especially in 
full knowledge of its evil influence upon ourselves and others 
— then, we offend. The Gospel is clearly and broadly against 
everything, whether food or drink, that especially conduces 
to intemperance in any direction. Our appetites must both be 
conquered and held under subjection. We must habituate 
them to denial, whenever the interests of the soul are jeopard- 
ized. 

The objections to Gospel temperance, based upon the acts 
of our Lord, are trifling in their character, and wicked in fact. 
Pure grape juice, fermented, or otherwise, is not in the ques- 
tion at issue. It is seized upon to cloak and protect the miser- 
able and powerful distillations and decoctions that alone are 
found in our public drinking- places. Men argue, for effect, 
and from narrow and improper motives, as well as in ignor- 
ance of the real facts, when they urge that because wine was 
used with the knowledge and consent of our Lord, therefore 
the Gospel allows stimulating drinks. A comparison of even 
the pure alcoholic wine, of our own times, with the villainous 
compounds of nineteen-twentieths or ninety-nine one-hundreths 
of our bar-rooms, should bring the blush of shame to the 
cheeks of such persons. 

In all this we have felt unwilling to admit anything 
favorable to wine. We apprehend that, in these times of high 
chemical advancement, and aptitude at imitation, when it is 
known that there is a surplusage of poison and deception in 



40 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the " vile stuff " so innocently advertised upon bottles, barrels, 
and signs, the use of wine, or even colored water, publicly, is 
an abuse. 

It may be well for us here to adduce the testimony of one 
of the most learned students of the Bible our country has 
produced, a man who battled against both wine and strong 
drink of all kinds while he lived, and one of the most effective 
of that class who believed that the wine of our Lord was un- 
alcoholic. He says : " The Bible speaks with approbation 
thirty-six times of substances called Tirosh in Hebrew, Oinos 
in Greek, Vinum in Latin, and wine in English, and nine 
times of similar substances called by other names ; and fifty 
times of Yayin (Heb.), Oinos, Vinum and wine, and every 
instance meaning either grapes, fresh grape juice, or grape 
juice boiled to a syrup, so as to prevent fermentation, and 
often ' mingled ' with from three to twelve times its volume 
of water, forming a delicious drink. In nearly all these cases 
the substances named would not intoxicate, though freely used 
as food or drink, and they would not create a morbid craving, 
which increased as it was gratified until its victims were con- 
sumed. On the other hand, Yayin, Oinos, Vinum, wine, or 
strong drink, and in other words, are named with disapproba- 
tion over one hundred times, meaning fermented wines for 
liquors, or those liquors ' mingled ' with drugs. Though in 
extreme agony, and almost exhausted, Christ rejected the 
wine ' mingled ' with myrrh, which was offered to Him on the 
cross, though He had often used the unintoxicating wines of 
Palestine, and even worked his first miracle to turn the water 
into this harmless wine. Christ's wine at Cana was not intoxi- 
cating, for it was better than what they had used until they 
had ' well drunk,' or drank nearly enough ; and Philo, a Jew, 
Plato, a Greek, and Pliny, a Roman, and other eminent 
ancients, expressly say that 'the best wine would not intoxi- 
cate.' At the passover, when Christ instituted the Lord's 
Supper, no fermented bread or wine could be used by any 
Jew." 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 41 

Thus, we believe that the temperance advocated to-day by 
Mr. Murphy is consistent with the Gospel ; that in its prohibi- 
tory features it does not transcend, in one iota, the Divine 
instructions ; and that the moral power he invokes in behalf of 
the cause is the highest and most thorough, as well as the only 
perfect way. When men have broken resolution after resolu- 
tion ; when they have become miserably besotted and profane ; 
when they have fallen to depths of intolerable pests ; when 
streams of obscenity and vice flow from their mouth as 
streams of filth from the public sewers ; and when they have 
nothing of confidence and hope left, — the Gospel is able to 
redeem, raise up and employ. None, among the worst, are de- 
spised by it. Its principles and power are extended to all. 

There is but one difficulty in the way of most thorough suc- 
cess, in the advocacy of Gospel temperance, which Mr. 
Murphy recognizes as no one before -him has so fully done. 
Men must be consistent. They must not regard caste. The 
acts of temperance people are closely criticised by the subject 
of reformation, as well as by the reformed drunkard. And 
the existence of the " I-am-better-than-thou " principle has 
sent many a good-meaning reformed man back to the haunts 
of intemperance. It is not only needful that men lift their 
fallen brethren up, but that they help to steady them when 
upon their feet. The humility and kindness, that enable in- 
dividuals to help others out of the gutter, must not desert 
them when they happen to catch the eye of a proud and un- 
charitable world behind them. Faithfulness to the first act 
only makes the work admirable, successful and noble. Other- 
wise insult is added to misery, and offense to sin. 

Before leaving this branch of our subject it may be well to 
add a few words in recognition of the vast importance to the 
public and the world at large of Gospel temperance. By 
statistics of the most reliable nature we are assured that vari- 
ous nations of the earth expend annually between one and two 
billions of money for intoxicating beverages — an amount which 
would feed and clothe every creature of poverty, educate 



42 THE TRUE PATH ; 

every young person, furnish a home to every family, provide 
a Bible for every fireside, and send the tidings of salvation to 
every part of heathendom. We know, also, by statistics 
equally anthentic, that there are one hundred and fifty thou- 
sand drinking saloons in the United States, and five hundred 
thousand habitual drunkards — of whom fifty thousand die an- 
nually. 



PART II. 



THE BIOGRAPHY OF 
FRANCIS MURPHY. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 45 



part n. 

THE BIOGRAPHY OF FRANCIS MURPHY. 
CHAPTER V. 

MR. MURPHY'S EARLY LIFE. HIS PARENTS 5 RELIGION. STRUG- 
GLES WITH POVERTY. PECULIAR HOSPITALITY. YOUNG- 
STERS HUDDLED INTO THE KITCHEN. WRONG TREATMENT. 

IRISH CUSTOM OF USING LIQUOR. — APPETITE FOR LIQUOR 

FIRST FORMED. A WAY THAT IS NOT THE " TRUE PATH." 

LIMITED EDUCATIONAL ADVANTAGES. A " PIGGY-BACK " 

FLOGGING. OUTRAGEOUSLY DEALT WITH. EFFECT OF UN- 
KINDNESS AND INJUSTICE. — " AN ACT MOST DIFFICULT TO 

FORGIVE." LONGING FOR A FREER AIR. AN IMMOVABLE 

PURPOSE. EMPLOYED AT A CASTLE. A DIFFICULT TASK. 

The great Apostle of Temperance was born April 24, 
1836, in Wexford, county of Wexford, Ireland. His mother 
was an humble Irish peasant widow, in rather impover- 
ished circumstances. His father, after a brief illness, died a 
short time previous to his birth. Often has he made the 
somewhat pathetic remark, that "he never knew a father's 
face or a father's smile." 

His home belonged to an estate. It was a small, thatched 
cottage, such as is usually met with among the poorer people 
os the Green Isle, and as is occasionally seen in our own 
country, in rural districts, somewhat remote from business 
centers. This home overlooked the sea, being upon the Har- 



46 THE TRUE PATH; 

bor of Wexford, not very distant from St. George's Channel, 
which connects the Irish Sea with the Atlantic Ocean. 

On the brow of a small hill, rising from the harbor, was 
nestled the little cottage, having every appearance of humble- 
ness and quiet. About it was the little garden of the house- 
hold, in w T hich were grown the most necessary vegetables, 
together with some beautiful flowers — combining the useful 
and ornamental — whilst, a little beyond, the golden grain lifted 
its myriad heads, as if watching the great expanse of water at 
its feet, and ever and anon bowing and swelling in imitation 
of its restless motion. Above it was the majestically curved 
canopy, which nowhere upon the earth has ever looked brighter 
and bluer than over Erin's hills and slopes, as they descend 
toward the turbulent sea. Beyond it, and not very distant, 
running out toward the Channel, appeared the rocky sides 
which have resisted successfully the tides and waves for centu- 
ries, and hurled back their angry and helpless foam. And, 
more prominently than all these, there loomed up the world of 
water upon the one side, and the clearly defined hills reposing 
lazily against the clouds, upon the other. Everything, at once, 
beautifully conspired together to give character to the scene, 
and make the home seem most lowly. 

Here, in youth, did Mr. Murphy catch the impressions and 
feelings that have greatly contributed to his effectiveness as a 
public speaker and worker ; here were formed the aspirations 
and desires that could never be satisfied with mere individual 
success in life ; and here, too, were nourished the soul faculties 
that have enabled him to look through the mists of misfortune 
and the gloom of prison-life, and to rise above the meanness 
of confirmed dissipation. Certainly, few persons, raised 
amidst the charms of such natural surroundings and having 
aught of spiritual discernment, could fail eventually to step 
out freely into the majesty of the Divine Spirit. 

Mr. Murphy's parents were of the Roman Catholic per- 
suasion. His mother was a devoted member of the Church, 
and carried her views and feelings into the family. She was 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEBANCE. 4/ 

ever ready to call her children* to her side in the hour of 
prayer. "Well do I remember/' said the lecturer, on one 
occasion, "how, when I was a youth, and was kneeling with 
my mother in silent prayer, she asked God to watch over my 
helplessness, and guide my riper years into the way of peace." 
She realized that there was One to whom she should go for 
direction, in the arduous and responsible duties of her house- 
hold, and to Him she often went, leading her children by their 
hands. 

The lives of the Murphys in Ireland were a connected series 
of struggles with poverty. The order of each day successively 
was work, quiet, heavy, steady toil. The children were re- 
quired to take their share in whatever was to be done. In 
certain seasons they had little of substantial rest. And their 
labors were attended, also, with considerable of inconvenience. 
At one time, in an address bearing upon these remarks, Mr. 
Murphy said : " There is such a thing as decent poverty, but 
I know, from personal encounter, that it is very inconvenient. 
I remember of going into the harvest field, and gleaning, and 
then taking the grain into the house, pushing away the furni- 
ture, and thrashing it out at night." 

Although trials of this kind would indicate to the people in 
our favored land an extreme condition of poverty"; yet, it may 
be well to remember that the Murphy family, like thousands 
of others in Ireland, were not the subjects of want. Other- 
wise, they found occasional opportunity of engaging in a 
species of hospitality peculiar to the people of that far-off 
island, a hospitality occasionally referred to by travellers and 
tourists in terms of warmest commendation. In reference to 
this Mr. Murphy spoke as follows in one of his public ad- 
dresses : 

" Public dinners were popular in the old country ; and, 
though we could not afford them, our friends would be in- 
vited sometimes, because my mother thought that it would 
be considered mean if she did not invite them. I enjoyed 
those days on which the friends would come to be feasted 



48 THE TEUE PATH ; 

at the little home. And the table might groan beneath the 
luxuries ; unless there was liquor upon it something seemed 
needed for the occasion. 

" It has been the fashion in my country, from time imme- 
morial, to have liquor on the table ; and it is thus that a great 
many young men have been brought into the habit of drink- 
ing, resulting, in the course of time, in their disgrace and 
shame. 

"I remember, when the table was spread, and all the ar- 
rangements made, how I was allowed to come into the room 
and see it. The white Irish linen cover and the little china 
tea cups, with a gilt rim around the edge, looked beautiful 
upon it. I remember, that when I only touched one of the 
cups it would seem to sing like a bird. I could see all the 
large raisins in the cake ; and it was with difficulty I could 
keep my fingers from them. Of course, I knew that if I 
touched them my mother would stir me up. 

" When you have a feast in this country the children are 
brought into the room and are introduced to the friends. In 
my country the youngsters are huddled into the kitchen. 
This was a part of our entertainments I did not like. My 
mother, when everything was ready, would call me aside and 
say, ' Come here, be a good boy, keep perfectly still, go 
straight out of this, and make no noise.' Thus, I remember 
being turned out into the kitchen, and how my hand doubled 
in perfect indignation. I can yet feel the scalding tears as I 
paced back and forth. 

" There is no pleasant remembrance about this treatment. 
Don't ask your friends to come to your house at the expense 
of your children. If there are no chairs, so that they can be 
seated at the table, I suggest, that the old folks go out and 
wait until the children have eaten. 

" On the occasion referred to I kept walking back and 
forth in great restlessness. Often I came to the door and put 
my ear to it that I might in some way enjoy the laughter and 
talking. There was a little latch across, and it would open if 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 49 

it was touched. Finally patience ceased to be a virtue, and the 
latch was touched, whereupon the door opened. At this, 
some of the friends noticed me, and beckoned to me to come 
into the room. I entered very cautiously, for if my dear 
mother had caught me she would have sent me back. The 
friends had gotten through eating and were quite merry over 
their drink. 

"Much has been said about the Irish people drinking in- 
toxicating liquor ; but, if you were accustomed to the ways in 
old Ireland, you would say very little about it. If half a dozen 
friends met together they had to have a drop of the crater, 
of course ; they couldn't get along without it. A man would 
be considered mean unless he had it on special occasions upon 
his table ; and no man likes to be called stingy. There is 
something fascinating to an Irishman in the thought that he 
is a liberal man, and that his friends will say of him : * I would 
like to repeat my visit to his house ; what beautiful whisky ; 
what splendid wine ; it was glorious.' 

"My friend would take his glass in his hand ; he was a dear 
friend of our family ; and, adding a little water to the whisky, 
would place it in my hand as I stood by his side. I remember 
of my looking up in his face and sipping it from a tea-spoon. 
Thus I first learned to love the taste of liquor. It was there 
the appetite was first formed. It was there the seeds of intem- 
perance were sown which cursed and made a wreck of me 
thousands of miles from my native land. 

"In justice to the memory of my beloved mother, who 
loved me as effectionately as your parents have loved you, I 
will say, there is a way that seemeth right to many of us, but 
the end thereof is death." 

The family was to a considerable extent deprived of educa- 
tional advantages. On account of its religion, the doors of 
the national schools were closed against the children ; and 
there was no remedy, except in the somewhat indifferent ar- 
rangements provided, at times, in the parishes, by the priest- 
hood. In these, the authority of the school-master was often 



50 * THE TBUE PATH ; 

unrestrained, which means that the method and extent of the 
instruction depended largely on his taste, temperament and 
caprice. And to these the Murphys had recourse. 

On one occasion, young Francis greatly offended, in some 
way, the austere man of the birch, and was made to feel the 
extent of his anger. In violent tone he was ordered from 
his seat, and astraddle the back of one of the larger boys in 
the school. In this, what is known among most American 
children as " piggy-back " position, having his legs held firmly 
about the body on which he was mounted, he was most merci- 
lessly wallopped and welted. The quick and willowy rod cut 
through the air, until it seemed well-filled with low, crisp 
whistles ; and it fell with visible effect upon the tightly cov- 
ered rump of Francis, who struggled and fretted terribly 
under the infliction. 

This was an event and scene that could not fail of a lasting 
impression upon the youth. Aside from his corporeal suffer- 
ing, his mind was filled with thoughts of the great public dis- 
grace that had befallen him. The words of Addison were 
true to the letter, and commended themselves most perfectly 
to the situation : 

" When vice prevails, and impious men bear sway, 
The post of honor is a private station." 

He was not accustomed to severitv of this kind in the little 
cottage at the hill. There, he was also a subject of discipline, 
at times, but had not to contend with the two-fold punishment 
of physical pain and public exposure. There, he knew that, 
whatever of castigation was administered, and however severe 
in its character, behind it were only purposes of kindness and 
love. 

While he continued at school he carried with him constantly 
the conviction that lie had been outrageously dealt with, and 
often appeared to worry under an uncontrollable longing to 
resent, at some time or other, the gross inhumanity. 

Not long since, in a speech, in which Mr. Murphy took oc- 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKA1TCE. 51 

casion to refer to the power of kindness, lie not only recited 
this incident, but made the declaration that, of all the wrong 
he had ever endured at the hands of any one, this seemed the 
greatest, and hardest to forget, and that, notwithstanding the 
flight of time, and change in his experience, he found it " an 
act most difficult to forgive." 

And the illustration he thus employed, we may well heartily 
commend to the attention of our readers. It merits some- 
thing of serious thought. There is often much of injury done 
the dependent creatures of households through want of careful 
judgment in the exercise of authority. Yv 7 hen children have 
advanced to years not only of considerable discretion, but 
have also become imbued with a sense of honor and manhood 
— the very qualities that should be most sacredly guarded and 
trained — the first show of injustice and attempt at degrada- 
tion should be abhorred. To maltreat and dear with youth as 
if they were little in advance of the brute, is to dwarf their 
natures, and disqualify them more for an honorable place in 
life. XInkindness and injustice, steadily practiced upon ten- 
der people, soon fasten themselves upon the whole being as a 
disease — one of an aggravated and despicable kind. In the 
words of Milton : 

* " The soul grows clotted by contagion, 
Iinbodies and imbrutes, till she quite lose 
The divine property of her first being." 

There is another phase of this subject. The unkindnesses of 
youthhood are not apt to be forgotten. They may never find 
expression in the after life, but far back in the secret and 
sacred vaults of the memory they are kept. Often in the hour 
of solitude — and after the perpetrators are buried forever 
from human sight, however near to us by consanguinity — we 
thumb over, in our thoughts, the various circumstances, until 
we shrink at the sudden truth that our love for their memories 
is becoming chilled ; then, hurriedly, we put back the little 
biographical scraps, and sigh and grow sad. 



52 THE TEUE PATH; 

How worthy the attention, also, the thoughts furnished us 
in the statement of Mr. Murphy that, even now, he found it 
" an act most difficult to forgive." After all these years — at 
least twenty-five — and all his chequered experience ; after the 
change of heart, by which the things that he once loved he 
now hates, and vice versa ; after the full development of the 
faculties of his soul into an exhibition of kindness and humani- 
tarianism that invites universal applause, after all this, in the 
fullness of his soul, he is forced to the confession that the 
prominent atrocity we have referred to, as part of his school- 
boy experience, is " an act most difficult to forgive." 

Everything in young Murphy's experience influenced him 
toward a broader and different life. Pie was now rapidly on 
his way to maturity. His mind was taking a new shape. A 
particular wish had been forming, and was pressing quite 
heavily upon him. Often, standing in the door of the cottage 
at eventide, and drinking in the fragrance of the flowers his 
own hands had planted, did he contemplate the grandeur of 
the world before him ; and often, too, yearn for a larger ex- 
perience in the battle of life than his home could possibly 
afford him. As the great vessels, with their valuable freights, 
both of life and property, passed and repassed, he longed for 
a freer air than that about him. He had heard of the won- 
derful country more than three thousand miles away, in which 
vast numbers of the sons and daughters of Ireland had found 
a prosperous and happy home, and fancied that every ship 
passing out toward the channel carried men and women from 
aland of oppression to one of almost unlimited freedom. 

When once the chains of slavery, however neatly and hu- 
manely fashioned, enwrap a people, the very children contract 
an inordinate desire to escape in some way their condition. 
And the more they are denied, through poverty, or any other 
cau«c, their ardent wishes, the more will they aspire to the very 
highest and most unrestrained kind of personal liberty. 

Far out upon the water the silken sails were frequently seen, 
and never failed to secure the attention of our embryo lecturer. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 53, 

The well-known destination of many of them excited anxious 
thoughts within him, and their easeful and graceful motion 
lulled his whole nature into an immovable purpose. His home 
had great attractions to one so tender in his attachments ; his 
mother had a deep and firm hold upon his affections ; and the 
remnant of the family were dear to him. Yet, his soul was, 
as a caged bird, looking away from its confinement into an 
atmosphere better suited to its requirements and nature. 

After a little time, a position was obtained by our subject, 
with his mother's landlord, in a neighboring castle, in which 
he was able to earn something for himself. His compensation 
was small, and his place one that did not satisfy either his 
own ambition, or the judgment of his mother. Nevertheless, 
upon the very sensible and popular axiom that " half a loaf is 
better than no b?ead," he was induced to engage in the service 
of others. 

In his position he was subjected to duties and treatment not 
in harmony by any means with his views. He was but a ser- 
vant, and as such felt it his lot to endure patiently something 
of indignity. When his master was upon his best behavior, and 
free from the effects of his favorite stimulant, the lad knew 
well the importance of remaining within the narrow limits 
of his position and round of duties ; and was ever conscious of 
the necessity for a regard for the manners peculiar to the air 
of landed property in his country. But, when his master had 
imbibed pretty freely, and entered upon what he considered 
a canty time, then the bright eyed young servant became the 
companion and equal, and shared in the heating potions of his 
liege, until both were beyond their boundaries, considerably. 

Thus, being near his home, and enabled to put in an appear- 
ance occasionally at the little cottage, where alone he met 
with a hearty reception, and substantial feelings of interest, 
his family learned of the temptations and trials by which he 
was surrounded, and felt keenty his danger. 

Nor were they unnecessarily suspicious, as the result fully 
proves. For, since the advent of Mr. Murphy in America, the 



54 THE TKUE PATH ; 

landed owner alluded to has become dispossessed of all his 
valuable estates, and been reduced to absolute penury and 
wandering, all through persistent inebriety. While the lord 
of the castle has fallen from a high place, on account of yield- 
ing to a debased appetite, his servant has risen to even a loftier 
and infinitely more honorable one, by breaking away from the 
same slavery, and fighting to enfranchise others. 

This is but the old story. It has ever been so. When will 
men learn wisdom? When will the lives that have been 
wrecked all along the by-ways of time, and dotting the most 
dangerous paths, as the suspended icicles do the eaves of our 
roofs, serve as sufficient warnings to others ? Why will men 
knowingly press on to destruction, sure, and speedy ? There 
is no exception to the rule, that they who adhere to the cup 
must be bitten, be poisioned, and eventually destroyed. 

While holding his position at the castle, young Murphy con- 
tinued, as occasion offered, and often at twilight, his medita- 
tions in front of the cottage. He gazed long and fondly upon 
the far-stretching billows, until there would rise within him 
the irrepressible desires that seemed to be feeding upon his 
very vitals. Surely his drudgery must soon end. 

Early had he learned to confide his plans and purposes to 
his mother. He knew full well of her trust in God, and her 
love for her children. Therefore his very thoughts were ever 
impulsively, and without temerity, poured into the maternal 
ear, and thus his secrets confided to his best of earthly friends* 
And she, on the other hand, had ever encouraged this. Being 
full of concern for the welfare of her boy, she gladly reasoned 
and counselled with him in all things, striving to point out for 
him the most dangerous thickets and by-ways in the path of 
life, as she, in her circumscribed way, was best able to discern 
them. 

But now, all this was somewhat changed. He had less 
disposition to unbosom himself to his mother than ever before. 
Never, within the range of his experience, had he felt so much 
of misgiving. He had already conversed with her, in a general 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 55 

way, upon the subject of emigrating to the New World ; but 
now there was something decisive near at hand, the great, and 
particular event, he believed, of his whole life. 

He was scarcely equal to his task. Could he, even by an 
act of justice and seeming necessity, bring tears to the eyes, 
and aches to the heart, and shadows to the life of that mother, 
who had been to him the dearest of all human substance and 
blessing? Could he stretch the greatest and holiest of all 
human ties to their fullest capacity of endurance ? We shall 
see ! 



56 THE TEUE PA^TH J 



CHAPTER VI. 

COMING TO AMERICA.- — THE DECISION. A SELF-SACRIFICING 

WOMAN. CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE EVENT. LAST WEEK IN 

IRELAND. THE LAST NIGHT. THE MOTHER^ BLESSING. 

THE SEPARATION.— THE VOYAGE. 

Young Murphy had already crossed the threshold of his 
sixteenth year. His ambitions resolves had expanded to their 
utmost tension. The golden dreams of many months, if not 
of some years, he felt would, at least, ere long be realized. He 
was now only awaiting a suitable time when, with the consent 
of his mother, he could plant his feet upon one of the many 
vessels steering out toward the setting sun. 

The days were growing more and more wearisome, as he 
failed to solve the wish and will of her whom he loved. He 
could endure the suspense no further. More than this, an ex- 
cellent opportunity presented itself, one that to him seemed 
especially desirable. Permission must be sought at once, and 
obtained, if possible. Nerving himself to the task, he stepped 
before his mother, and looking up into her face, with an 
anxiety she could not but readily discern, said, "I should like 
to be permitted to go to America." 

It was the work of a moment. But, then, it was also the 
work of a life. To the son, that moment was freighted with 
the highest of worldly interests. To the mother, it was a 
struggle scarcely second to any other in her history. Yet, it 
was but the work of a moment on the part of both. The boy 
saw only the fair shores, beauteous homes, and free hills and 
vales of the far-off land to which his soul was leaping as a 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 57 

hart. The mother saw her boy — his somewhat gloomy pros-- 
pects at home — her increasing years and cares — the heel of 
what seemed to her to be the oppressor ; — and then, her great 
heart widening to the occasion, ready to endure every sacri- 
fice for his good ; then, though it crushed her, she decided for 
him. It was done. 

Noble mother ! Our heart goes out to her even now. It 
matters not what her disadvantages or difficulties in life, we 
have both admiration and love for such matrons, wherever 
found. 

Men have appended the words, " a demi-god " to the names 
of many who were good and great in the annals of both pub- 
lic and private history. But such women are above our demi- 
gods. They near absolute divinity. They will allow the 
chords about their hearts to snap one after another rather 
than sacrifice a morsel of the real interest of those who have 
drunk the life-blood from their own veins. 

Noble mother ! They who have not had such, are miser- 
ably poor, in comparison, however fortune has otherwise 
smiled upon them. The memory of such a mother is dearer 
and sweeter far, though she has passed into the heavens, than 
all the most mellowing effects of the subsequent years, filled 
with kindness and attention. 

We may speak of the sublime natures of wives and daugh- 
ters, whose lives have been prolific in sacrifices and exalted 
devotion ; but, it is not until they rise to the high and holy 
place of faithful Christian mothers, that they attain to their 
highest distinction. "There's no love like a mother's love," 
greets us often in the household ; and while, from the love we 
bear the companions of our bosoms, we cannot, perhaps, at 
the moment, repeat the words ; yet, we bow humbly our 
heads, and wipe away the tear of memory. Nor can our dear 
companions but honor our emotion, as they behold their 
children around their forms lovingly calling them " mother ! " 

Noble mother, we must exclaim, yet again ! Would that 
we could place on record a more fitting tribute to the divine 



58 THE TEUE PATH ; 

action. Surely, just where men are too feeble to give proper 
expression to the overflowing impulses of their souls, when 
kindled into activity by such beings, there does the recording 
angel take up his pen, open the great book of eternity, and 
begin to indite the record of their worth. 

How could men other than of great hearts — of almost bound- 
less sympathies — but descend from such a woman? How 
could the offspring of such, ever under the guiding eye of 
God, be allowed to fall into the pit of destruction ? 

But it may be well here to employ the words of Mr. 
Murphy in relation to the event referred to : — "I shall never 
forget," said he, "my mother's countenance, when I looked 
into her face, and presented my request. Dear soul, she could 
hardly speak to me. Her eyes quickly filled up, and her lips 
parted so strangely. She said, i Yes, I think it will be best for 
you to go, my boy.' " 

As has already been shown, there was little or no hope for 
the Murphy children. The position of the family, and the 
condition of the country, almost totally shut them from any- 
thing like a fair prospect in life. The merest servitude was 
before them, and that was even not to be depended upon at all 
times. 

The mother, in her great disquietude of mind, shortly after 
the foregoing interview, called at the castle about which her 
son was employed, and earnestly conversed with him. She 
appeared greatly moved, and her conversation betrayed the 
depth of the current of feeling that was stirred. After a 
slight pause, she said, in a somewhat subdued, but firm tone, 
" I would like to have you come home, and spend the last week 
with me." 

Of course, to this request Francis yielded. He could not do 
otherwise. And, when the last hour of his toil closed, he 
eagerly set his face toward the old home. It was evident, 
however, that the real nature of the step he was taking now 
began to appear to him — doubtless, for the first time. He 
thought of his mother — of her faithfulness to all that con- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 59 

cerned him, of her many exhibitions of deep love, of the possi- 
bility that he should never see her again, and many similar 
things, until his heart grew heavy, and the well-known voice 
greeted him at the cottage door. 

We will not, of ourselves, attempt to invade the privacy of 
the following week. That is a task that belongs alone to the 
only remaining witness, and he has freely and eloquently 
opened his heart to the public, in the premises. We will now 
advert to his own story : — 

" I never shall forget that week. I can see my mother going 
backward and forward through the house. Her time was 
chiefly spent in making the needful preparations, and packing 
up for me. And when she would lift up the clothes and look 
at them, I could see the tears running down her cheeks. She 
would look at me awhile, as if in deep thought and solicitude, 
and then silently walk away. I thank God for the memory of 
that week at home. It has been a great blessing to me. I was 
only sixteen years of age ; yet, blessed be God, the memory of 
that home, that face and that voice, is still fresh and sweet in 
my heart. 

" And then, the last night came, before I was to leave. 
It was the custom in old Ireland, when a man was passing 
his last night at home, to send for his friends. But mother 
said, ' My son, I should like to be alone with you this last 
night.' There was no person invited. My trunk was partly 
packed and there were some clothes placed upon the bureau 
alongside of my trunk. My mother said to me, ' get your 
chair and sit with me here to-night.' And she took her 
seat by the t#ble with her head resting upon her hand. 
Sometimes she would lift up her head and look into my 
face, and then drop it down upon her bosom and place her 
bands across her breast. I could see her struggle to control 
her grief. We sat there until it was one o'clock at night, 
and I don't think there were twenty words spoken between 
us. Mother finally arose from her chair and said to me, ' My 
son, I think I will try and finish packing your trunk.' Never 



60 THE TRUE PATH 



shall I forget that voice as she arose from the chair. She 
spoke so strangely. She walked over to where the trunk was, 
looked into it, and then reached over to the clothes on the 
bureau, and placed them in it. She smoothed them down with 
great care. When the last garment was placed in it, it was 
all the dear soul could do to stand up again. Afterward, she 
raised up from her stooping position over the trunk, and walk- 
ing to the window watched for the carriage that was to come 
for her boy. When I was ready to start, mother stood with 
her back to me, and I could see her trembling. 

" I had not yet received her blessing. It was really about 
all she could give me, dear soul. You can hardly find a 
countryman of mine in America who would not prize his 
mother's blessing. I think sometimes Americans do not 
value the parental blessing enough. For my mother to put 
her hand on my head, and say, i God bless you ' was a great 
deal to me. I arose from my seat and walked up to where 
mother was, and putting my arms about her neck, said, ( mother, 
now give me your blessing before I part from you.' I then 
knelt at her feet, and she, placing her loving hand upon my 
head, said, ' May the blessing of God go with you ; and may 
you remember, my dear boy, that the same sun that shines on 
me shines on you ; that the same God that is watching over 
us in our humble home, will care for you in a strange country ; 
and oh, may you not forget your mother.' " 

How touching this narrative. And so full of interest does 
it seem in its brief recital, that it savors more of romance 
than of real life among the humble poor in Ireland. Yet it 
has the stamp of strange truth upon it. "No fiction could be 
more so. It commends itself to the kindly sympathy and 
admiration of every Christian reader. Yea, more, it teaches 
us something of real and permanent value. It brings to our 
minds that honored, custom of the patriarchal times, the be- 
stowal of parental blessing — the importance of which is lost 
sight of in these days of extended commerce, hurried specula- 
tion, constant immersion in business and consequent neglect of 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 61 

spiritual training in families — and shows how that, where 
religion has not been smothered out, there is a natural disposi- 
tion of soul to adhere to it; proving also. to our judgment 
that, under God's providence, there is enough merit in, to 
make a necessity for, it. 

The effect of this last occurrence upon Francis Murphy 
was none other than would be upon most young persons under 
similar circumstances. In reference to it he has said, "1 can 
say without hesitation, if ever a young man left his home with 
a fixed determination to prove a blessing to his mother in her 
declining years, that young man was myself. I expected to 
make her life radiant with sunshine. 5 ' 

The moments of deep suspense were now about to close. 
The time for the arrival of the conveyance, which was to bear 
the son away to a landing at some distance from the cottage, 
had arrived. A few moments later and its rumbling was be- 
coming more and more distinct in the descending road-way. 
Soon it reached the cottage. The well-filled trunk was speedily 
placed in position, and Francis and his mother bade adieu to 
each other for a time — yea, as the sequel shows, forever upon 
earth. 

Had the mother known the bitter experience of many years 
which awaited her beloved boy in this far-off favored land ; 
had she seen how that the slavery of alcohol in our free gov- 
ernment can be even more terrible in its effects than that of a 
tyrant in any European monarchy ; and how that her son was 
only hastening to deeper bondage, — her soul would have sunk 
within her, and her arms would have refused to separate from 
the last embrace. 

But it is well that foresight is the prerogative of Divinity, 
and separate from our finite minds ; that we are not unfitted 
for our present enjoyments by our knowledge of the future, 
so often pregnant with calamity and direst experiences ; and 
that we can not only be shut out from all imaginary trials, 
but also rise above all real bitterness, and look above the 
coming years into the beyond* through the eye of faith. 



62 THE TEUE PATH ; 

Speedily the carriage rolled away with— to that trembling, 
solicituous soul bowed beneath its weight of sorrow, and 
weeping in the doorstead of the little thatched cottage — its 
world of precious freight. Sad, truly, are such separations. 
They cannot but beget in every devout Christian heart, as they 
are doubtless intended to, a desire for the time when there shall 
be no more going in and out forever. We can bow reverently 
before the feelings of that woman ; and can also realize a 
sense of anguish, in view of the years before that youth emi- 
grant. Poor mother ! Poor boy ! 

In a little while young Murphy reached the place where the 
vessel, along with many others, lay, in which he was soon to 
set sail. A boatman was hard by whose duty it was to place 
him on board. This was done with due speed, as all hands 
appeared eager for the voyage. After the further lapse, how- 
ever, of about two hours, occasioned, perhaps, by the delay of 
freights, the orders were rapidly issued to the hands on deck, 
and the ship was loosed from her moorings. 

At this point was the subject of our biography first favored 
with the sight of a tug-boat, a pretentious looking little thing 
which steamed up and hitched fast to the vessel. The pur- 
pose, evidently, was to pilot it into the channel, and thence into 
the sea. 

The voyage was soon fully entered upon, and out on the 
bosom of the pathless ocean, now riding majestically against 
the waves that beat upon her bows, and then ascending the 
mountainous billows, and plunging downward again into the 
watery trough, rode the ship, with its numerous emigrants, 
bearing to our shores, and his destiny, the humble Irish lad, 
who, in the coming time, should marshal the most gigantic and 
successful of all temperance reforms known to history. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 63 



CHAPTER VII. 

ON THE SEA AND IX THE NEW WORLD. — DRINKING AND TREAT- 
ING. TURNED OUT UPON THE WORLD. EVERYTHING GONE. 

A SITUATION SECURED. OFF TO CANADA. AT FARM 

WORK. — GETS MARRIED. A CHRISTIAN WIFE. — ARRIVAL OF 

A BROTHER. 

Those who are accustomed to the conveniences and com- 
parative comforts of a voyage from New York, or Philadel- 
phia, to Liverpool, or elsewhere, as afforded by our modern 
and elegantly furnished steamers, occupying usually not more 
than two weeks, from port to port, can have no conception of 
the annoyances and tediousness peculiar to emigrant life at 
sea. Nothing could be more repugnant to a naturally good 
taste, than the manners, habits and associations uniformly en- 
countered ; and these, too, for the protracted period, usual to 
packet ships and barks, in coming from the ports of the Irish 
sea to this country. 

Young Murphy's spirit of adventure was most probably not 
increased* or intensified by the entourage. On the contrary, 
many circumstances must have contributed their quota toward 
creating in him a spirit of depression and great weariness. 
His thoughts were as apt to fly backward to the Wexford home, 
as forward to the one his imagination had reared. His ex- 
perience was far from what he had expected ; as far, it may 
be, as was that of his later years, up to the time of his escape 
from the slavery of intemperance. 

After asail'of seven weeks and three days, the much-longed- 
for shores lay before the vessel. It had at least reached its 
destination. The great city of New York loomed up ; and 



64: THE TKUE PATH ; 

nearly all on board seemed to regard the objects of prominence 
as they stretched away toward the sky, with strained eyes 
and bated breaths. No one on board felt more exultant than 
Francis Murphy. His somewhat secluded and narrowed life 
at home made the countless things before him doubly interest- 
ing. His heart beat quickly, and his joy, at being able to step 
upon the land of his choice, could scarcely be restrained. 

The passengers and their baggage were transferred by boat 
to the land. Upon the counsel and invitation of a man, whose 
acquaintance young Murphy had made, he directed his steps 
toward a hotel. He had given himself and his checks into the 
charge of the person in question, and with him soon reached 
his first stopping-place — a tavern. Here suitable rooms w T ere 
found, and, unfortunately, something of genial companionship. 

One of the first of the youth's acts was to yield to the temp- 
tation to take a drink. Stepping into the bar-room, with his 
newly made friend, he called for " something to take. 5 ' This 
appeared, at the time, to be about the most convenient term 
for any kind of liquor. In the old country they drank by the 
" noggin," or, in the old Irish, " noigin," which was a mug, 
or wooden cup, and about equal in measure to a gill. Our 
youth was ready to adapt himself freely to his new surround- 



ings. 



A hearty indulgence now. commended itself to young Mur- 
phy, in view of his safe deliverance from the perils of the 
deep ; and, like thousands of others, instead of lifting his 
heart in thankfulness, he robbed Jehovah of the glory due, 
and bestowed it freely upon the devil. 

Drink after drink and treat after treat followed, and Frank, 
and Tim, and Jim, and the bar-keeper kept on successively at 
" setting them up," until things became so mixed that the track 
of the whole business was eventually lost. The fact was that, 
at his home in Ireland, our lad knew little or nothing of the 
queer effects of American "tangle-foot," even at that day, 
and he somewhat innocently, rather, ignorantly, drank to his 
confusion. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 65 

The liberality manifested by our Irish lad, and his fondness 
for tippling had won the kindly attention — for either the word 
respect, or esteem, would be a misnomer — of the landlord. 
Through the space of just about one week his drinking had con- 
tinued, when suddenly he was brought to a round turn by the 
fact that his money was all gone. Of course, this soon became 
known to his host. But, encouraged by the cordial interest 
shown him, young Murphy believed that all would go well 
with him. 

It was not so. The friendship of the man, whose coffers 
took in, bit by bit, all the lad's change, was exhausted with 
the last piece spent at his bar. After but a brief parley the 
youth was turned out upon the world. 

Reason, and a decent regard for human nature, would have 
suggested that a smooth-faced stranger, without family or kin, 
should have had something of sympathy, attention and instruc- 
tion — or rather, of protection and help. But he had fallen 
among evil friends — into hands unused to acts of kindness and 
charity. * The business, which so largely preys upon our vitals 
as a nation, often influences its representatives to acts of 
rapacity, even upon the innocent and unwary. 

"Without a suitable home or friends, for three weeks our lad 
persisted in a course of inebriety. Not only was his money 
gone, but, at the end of this time, everything he had brought 
with him from across the ocean, was also beyond his reach. 
His situation was a most wretched one, and, as he began to 
realize the fact, and recover his wonted judgment, he saw the 
urgent necessity for some way of escape. But the prospect 
was very slender, and he was exceedingly depressed. 

Becoming, of necessity, quite sobered, he sought the interest 
and influence of several persons, through whose kindness he 
happily secured a situation. 

It was his purpose, now, to repair the mischief he had 
wrought, by replacing his most needful articles of dress. His 
face was in the right direction, and his intentions were appar- 
ently firm and good. Faithfully he entered upon his labor. 



66 THE TRUE PATH ; 

But, ah, how vainly man proposes ! The youth knew not 
his true condition. His blood was poisoned, his taste per- 
verted, and his whole being enslaved. The appetite for strong 
drink remained. He could not, and did not, continue to ab- 
stain from it for any length of time. 

Under such circumstances his life would, of course, be sub > 
jected to many changes, and they would quickly begin their 
round. Thus, he found it necessary, in a little time, to seek 
employment elsewhere. 

In obedience to the advice of a friend, he concluded to go 
to Quebec, Canada, in the hope of filling an engagement of a 
certain kind. But Fortune did not seem to smile upon him, 
and he was obliged to turn his attention to some other point. 
His scanty funds were now nearly exhausted, and he could 
not very well return to the States ; therefore he concluded to 
go to Montreal and seek employment. Soon after his arrival 
he obtained a position at a hotel, such an one as would, at 
least for a time, satisfy his necessities, if not indeed his tastes. 

After retaining his place, for the space of between one and 
two years, he was finally obliged to relinquish it, on account 
of his drinking habits. In this strait, he could not very well 
expect favor in the land of St. George's Cross, therefore he 
determined to re-enter the country of his choice. 

Removing to the State of New York, he found himself com- 
pelled to engage at farm work. His duties were arduous, and 
his remuneration very light. Nevertheless, through industry, 
both at his labor, and in subduing somewhat his appetite for 
strong drink, he began to realize something of success. 

In reference to this period of his life he has said, " I was 
compelled to learn the profession of driving oxen on a farm ; 
and as a green Irish boy, with a goad in hand, I learned to 
talk to Buck and Bright." And in further allusion to this 
part of his experience he has remarked, " I have seen a man 
laugh at me, while I was chopping a maple log. I was cutting 
away, at a great rate, and thought I was doing splendidly, but 
every time I struck the log he would shout and laugh at me." 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 67 

Evidently, the youth had not entirely gotten away from his 
former habits, and was struggling between two loads — one in 
his head, and the other at his feet. 

Finding his way, soon after, further into the country, he 
was enabled to overcome his appetite more perfectly, and took 
to a sober and circumspect life. Here, having a magnetism 
that few persons could excel him in, and manifesting the 
gallant tendencies of his countrymen, he became enamored of 
an intelligent and attractive young lady. In a short time his 
influence commanded the desired respect and affection, and he 
obtained the hand of the fair one. 

Young Murphy was now eighteen years of age, and married. 
His relations to the world were greatly changed, and his 
thoughts and purposes also had become more matured. He 
saw the necessity for a life of steadiness and industry, and 
applied himself with energy to his daily labor. Thus, through 
a period of some years — perhaps five or six — he continued in 
New York State, toiling and accumulating, little by little. 

The young lady he had married proved to him a most valu- 
able and tender companion, and had much to do with the suc- 
cess and continued sobriety of his life. She was a Christian 
in every sense of the word. She had been taught the ways of 
true wisdom, having enjoyed the influences of religion, and 
was evidently possessed of faculties largely spirituel — such as 
we, at times, meet with, and recognize as much above the or- 
dinary grade of character. 

To her he confided all his wishes and intentions, and from 
her received no little of counsel and direction, knowing well 
the value of her judgment, her most amiable nature, and her 
rigid regard for all his interests. 

The influence of so estimable a companion upon Mr. Mur- 
phy could not but be marked and unbounded. This has ap- 
peared on various occasions, in his public addresses. Recently 
he remarked to a large audience, " If you have a good Chris- 
tian wife, consult her in all your business. Give her to feel 
that she is a partner in life with you ; that you are to work 



68 THE TRUE PATH;' 

together ; and believe in each other, come what will. Hearts, 
thus joined together by God's Holy Spirit, nothing should 
separate. There is no difficulty they cannot surmount ; no 
obstacle they cannot overcome. With faith in each other, 
and faith in God, they will come through all right." 

During these years of Mr. Murphy's experience, an older 
brother came to America, and settled with him for the time. 
This was quite a pleasing circumstance to Francis, and gave 
him no little of encouragement and ambition in his fixedness 
of living. He began to feel that he had an interesting and 
important part in the great battle of life, and that he must 
act well now, if ever enduring success should crown his efforts. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 69 



CHAPTER VIII. 



REMOVED TO PORTLAND. A NEW BUSINESS. HIS WIFE OPPOSED 

TO IT. ACTING ALONE. BRADLEY HOUSE RENTED. WILL 

SELL LIQUOR "RESPECTABLY." PROMISED HER NOT TO 

DRINK. AT HOME IN THE HOTEL. A GENUINE CONVERT. 

BUSINESS SUCCESSFUL.— A WRECK AT LAST. — -MANNER OF 
HIS RUIN. A MAN'S NECK BROKEN. CONTINUOUS DISSIPA- 
TION. 



In due course of time, Mr. Murphy determined, in connec- 
tion with his brother, to select some other place of residence ; 
and, led by friendly considerations, fixed upon the city of 
Portland, Maine. 

Here the brothers, filled with the idea of their peculiar 
adaptation to hotel-keeping, and the remarkably profitable na- 
ture of such business, began to make especial drafts upon their 
enterprise. Francis had his purposes well set upon a public 
life of that description, as the only and sure road to his ulti- 
mate success ; but his heart, somehow, almost failed him, 
when he considered that his wife's consent might only be ob- 
tained with difficulty. He would not engage in it, however, 
until he had consulted" the partner of his bosom. 

When he presented her his project, she saw the consequences 
that would likely ensue, and opposed it. Her womanly in- 
stincts were averse to a business, from which she had every- 
thing to fear, and nothing of either comfort or pleasure to 
gain. Her soul revolted at the thought of her husband having 
his old appetite aroused, for she had heard of his trials while 



70 THE TKUE PATH; 

in bondage to drink, and she looked with something of anx- 
iety toward the little ones gathering about her. She would 
not yield her indorsement. But looking up into his face she 
said : 

" Frank, I would sooner beg for a living, in the streets of 
Portland, than to have you sell intoxicating liquor." 

The manner, the countenance, the words, the rare judgment, 
and the moral character of the woman, all spoke volumes to 
her husband, as she uttered these words. They were pro- 
nounced in firmness, and yet a cloud of sadness seemed to play 
about her clear white brow. 

Here was a troublous thing. Mr. Murphy had tried to live 
in entire harmony and sympathy with his companion, and was 
accustomed to an exhibition of respect for her opinions, 
although he did not always heed them. How could he, how- 
ever, oppose her in this ? Certainly, he concluded, in so im- 
portant a matter as his business, he should act alone, and assert 
his dignity as a man. 

There are plenty of such men. In matters that are all- 
important, and concern the general welfare of the family, they 
will be governed freely by the views of the loved ones, so long 
as a depraved taste is out of the question. But, let once this 
latter feature present itself, they will meanly retreat behind 
what they call " manhood," a miserable condition of slavery 
to the carnal nature, that is wanting in everything either dig- 
nified or respectable. 

A short time since, Mr. Murphy declared, in reference to 
the event mentioned, "I consulted her out of courtesy, and if 
she did not indorse my way, I pursued it all the same. I 
never saw a man have occasion, in the end, to regret having 
consulted his wife. Men engaged in the sale of intoxicating 
liquor do not, in general, consult their wives. They think 
they are capable of managing their own business ; but their 
wives are worried to death by it. After all, there's nothing 
like a man taking his wife into his confidence, just as he has 
taken her into his heart. He should make her to feel that she 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKAjSTCE. 11 

is loved, and should consult, and be advised by, her in his 
business. Thus God's Spirit will both lead and help. 

The Murphy brothers persisted in their purpose and rented 
the Bradley House, on the corner of Commercial and India 
streets, with the purpose of having the family of Francis use 
it as a residence. It was at once furnished in a comfortable 
way, and everything, looking to its speedy occupancy, accom- 
plished. 

Now, however, came the more unpleasant part of their 
arrangements. Mrs. Murphy was to be informed, her objec- 
tions overcome, and herself and family to be brought to their 
new home. Francis at once advised her of his course, expressed 
the hoj3e that she would give her consent to the removal, and 
by way of encouragement, said, " I am not going to make any 
effort to sell liquor, but I will only keep it for my customers 
and sell it respectably." 

This is a landlord's idea, the world over, when he has to 
confront his objecting friends, or answer a chiding conscience. 
He will sell liquor "respectably." We have heard of men 
swearing " respectably ;" of others robbing "respectably;" 
and of still others gambling "respectably." But we have not 
seen any of it — nor have we been able to understand how it is 
done in that way. 

But hear how Mr. Murphy, the- reformer, replies to the 
declaration of Mr. Murphy, the landlord : " It is an utter 
impossibility to sell liquor respectably. It is the worst busi- 
ness under the sun. The finest of men, apparently, will come 
to you and say, ' Give me another drink. 5 You reply, ' You 
have enough !' They then urge, Q Don't I know my business ?' 
And thus you cannot refuse them without the dreaded quar- 
rel." 

To still further induce his wife to acquiesce in his plans, Mr. 
Murphy promised her that he would not drink himself. 

This, of course, was a matter of importance to the faithful 
Christian wife and mother, in the event of her yielding to her 
husband, under protest. But the nature made noble by the 



72 THE TKTTE PATH; 

grace of God considered not her immediate interests alone. 
It had also_a proper esteem for those of others, for she bravely 
replied, " If you don't drink yourself, some other people will 
take it !" 

How thoughtful and true ! She knew that, if her own heart 
did not mourn and break, because of cruelty and desolation in 
the home, from the use of villainous liquids, the hearts of 
other wives and mothers were endangered. And thus she ful- 
filled the law of Christ. 

After a brief temporary delay, during which the needful 
disposition of furniture was made, Mr. Murphy called with a 
carriage for his wife and children, and took them to their new 
abode. While going through the rooms, he inquired : 

" How do you like it, wif e ?" 

" I suppose I shall have to like it !" was the reply, as a 
singular expression of intense sadness crossed her face. She 
knew that her husband had spent his money in fitting up 'the 
place, and that there was no help for her. 

" Don't be concerned, I am not going to take intoxicating 
liquors," argued her husband. 

" Somebody else will drink," was the quick response, as on 
the previous occasion. 

Mr. Murphy need have furnished no other incident, nor have 
added one word more, to prove the Christian character and 
womanly worth of his companion. She was evidently a 
genuine convert to our holy religion. 

And, as has been said, there are hundreds of just such 
women to-day, who, through tears and sighs and prayers, are 
struggling at the throne of the heavenly grace in behalf of 
their husbands and sons, that they may be led from the de- 
basing traffic in rum to an honorable and righteous life. 

Thus began the career of Francis Murphy, at Portland, as a 
hotel-keeper. In a little time quite a lively business was 
transacted. The enterprise was a decided success, and the 
brothers were elated with their prospects. 

In the progress of time the elder brother, becoming wearied 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKAETCE. IS 



of the business, declined in favor of Francis, who was now left 
in possession. His success was assured, and he became 
financially prosperous. 

For a period of about ten years Mr. Murphy continued in 
the proprietorship of the hotel. But during this time he fell 
under the assaults of the demon of strong drink. Toward the 
close of it he became so fond of his " grog," that he grew 
careless of his customers, neglected his business, and gradually 
lost the accumulated savings of years. Finally, his hotel was 
closed upon upon him, and he was turned out, with his family, 
a wretched drunkard. 

When he began his business, he did not expect to fall ; but 
was of the conviction that he had the most complete control 
of himself. Diligently for a time did he observe the promise 
given his wife. But eventually the temptation of his business 
proved too much for him. Friends, comprising a circle to 
which he became greatly attached, would call at his place and 
urge him to indulge with them. 

" Don't ask me to drink, it is impossible," was the invariable 
response. 

" Come on, let us have a drink," plead they. 

" Remember my wife and children," was offered as the last 
and most potent excuse. 

" Take a little ale, then," was urged. 

Finally, the glass of ale was taken, and, according to his 
own declaration, "It was that glass of ale that sealed Frank 
Murphy's fate." In regard to it he has also added, "If I had 
not tasted it, I would be willing to part with my strong right 



arm." 



This step taken, Mr. Murphy's fall began. He soon took 
another, and another, and so on, until his old habits and appe- 
tite were in full sway upon him. His wife speedily detected 
the misfortune, and felt its heavy weight, but did not utter 
words of unkindness. She was not given to scolding, or 
censure, and preferred to beak*, meekly and patiently, her 
trials, rather than wound, even when merited. 



74 THE TEUE PATH; 

Following the loss of his hotel, Mr. Murphy entered the 
saloon or boarding-house business in a limited way. But 
the blighting effects of liquor prevented him from meeting 
with anything of prosperity. 

On one occasion, an intoxicated man entered his house, 
and insisted upon going up stairs. The bar-keeper refused 
to allow this. After a momentary effort, the man broke 
away, and hurrying up the steps, met Mr. Murphy at the top. 
A few hasty words followed, whereupon the two engaged in a 
scuffle, during which both fell and rolled to the floor below. 
Mr. Murphy was not hurt, but the assailant was picked up 
dead— his neck having been broken in the fall. 

Mr. Murphy was arrested immediately after the occurrence, 
and was subsequently tried and acquitted. The occurrence 
proved quite a misfortune to the family pecuniarily, as also a 
source of deep sorrow. 

From the time of the liberation of Mr. Murphy he con- 
tinued his acts of dissipation. His family were now reduced 
to a condition of constant anguish and suffering. In the 
midst of his carousals, his little boy would come to him at 
times, near the hour of midnight, and plead with him to return 
to his mamma. Then, perhaps, accompanying the child, he 
would seek and enter his wretched home, and find the pallid 
face of his wife resting upon her hand, while her eyes seemed 
to be pouring intently over the Word of God. The words, 
it might be, would quietly drop from her lips, " I wish* you 
would stop drinking." To this the answer was promptly given, 
and perhaps a trifle curtly, " I wish I could/' followed with 
a long and burdensome silence. 

The picture seems a dark one. Surely it will awaken 
sympathy wherever pondered. But the reader cannot form 
a reasonable conception of its real nature, any more than 
he can look into the hearts and lives of that family and see 
the various lights and shades, in all their intensity of character, 
through which they have successively come. ■ 

Here Francis Murphy, the husband and father, is a common 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 15 

drunkard, a burden to his family and society, and without a 
friend outside his poor family. There is not one to be found, 
in the city of Portland, who will say a word in extenuation of 
his course. He is even notably degraded in the eyes of those 
who hold loosely every principle of sobriety. Surely the com- 
munity can abide such a man no longer. 



76 THE TKTJE PATH; 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE ARM OF THE LAW TO BE INVOKED. — EVERYTHING LOST, AND 

WITHOUT A FRIEND. ARRESTED.— A CONFIDING MAN. 

THRUST INTO JAIL. DESERTED. AN ERRONEOUS OPINION. 

A FAULTY SYSTEM. WRONG IN PRACTICE. MUST GO TO THE 

FOUNTAIN HEAD. AUXILIARIES. A SUFFERING FAMILY. 

We are now called upon to record an event in the life of 
Mr. Murphy of more than ordinary importance. Strong drink 
had done its worst. Its power was to be stayed by the strong 
arm of the law. In a crushed and neglected home were a wife 
and children whose claims upon public sympathy could not be 
totally ignored. They were at least approaching deep trial — 
having endured much of mental anguish already — through the 
persistent drunkenness of the husband and father. An effort 
must be made to check the mischief already done, and prevent 
further misfortune among the innocent. 

It will interest the general reader to have placed before him 
the statements of Mr. Murphy in reference to what followed.' 
After detailing his experience as an inebriate, he said : 

" I lost everything I owned in this world in the city of Port- 
land. On the night of September 25, 1869, I was a bankrupt, 
without a dollar, and, I think I can say, without a friend. 
This is a good deal for a man to say. It is easy enough for a 
man to simply say that he has no friends ; but it is quite an- 
other thing for a man to feel it down deep in his heart. 

" When misfortune came my friends passed away. I then 
kept on drinking, trying thereby to forget the sorrows that 
had come upon me. I did not care much whether I lived or 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 17 

died. Even the men who were engaged in the same business 
I had followed gave me the cold shoulder. Generally speak- 
ing, if you have been respected in the liquor business, and be- 
come unfortunate, you will find a great gulf to come between 
those similarly engaged and yourself. 

" Some persons thought that the best thing they could do 
for me and my family would be to have me arrested and sent 
to the county jail for reformation. Nevertheless, it has been to 
me one of the greatest crosses of my life. 

" A countryman of mine, a wholesale liquor dealer, and Mr. 
Perry, the sheriff, came to my place, one day, and asked me to 
take a walk down the street with them. I did so, not knowing 
what their business with me was. The sheriff had been talk- 
ing about things of recent occurrence, when, suddenly he said : 

" 6 1 have been requested to have yon arrested.' 

" 6 By whom,' I asked. 

" Thereupon he pulled a writ from his pocket, having the 
signatures of four men upon it. One of these was in the same 
business I followed, and, of course, had not the least sympathy 
with me. They did not come and talk with me in a manly 
way, but determined upon arresting me, like a dog, and thrust- 
ing me into a dark dungeon. I asked : 

" ' Will you let me go and see my friend Patrick McClidgy.' 

" ' Yes ; we will go with you to him,' was the reply. 

" McClidgy was a man I loved as truly as I did my own 
children. We had been drunk and sober together. We had, 
so-called, good times in associating together ; and I loved 
him. When we went and saw him, he said : 

" ' Take him away and lock him up, it's the best thing you 
can do for him.' 

"At this, it seemed to me my heart would break. It was 
about the hardest blow of my life." 

We may here indulge profitably, perhaps, in a few reflec- 
tions. Mr. Murphy is the very embodiment of genuine kind- 
ness and affection to his friends. He evidently is not the kind 
of nature that will desert a friend in the hour of his extremity, 



78 THE TEUE PATH; 

but, on the contrary, is rather eager to prove his faithfulness 
at every opportunity. Such being the case, his soul revolts at 
the very thought of anything perfidious. To find faithlessness 
in a friend, would always be to him a matter of surprise, and 
intense sorrow. Having a make-up that admits of the fullest 
exercise of confidence, and also spiritual faith, he cannot brook 
the want of these in any one whom his affections cherish. 

Such a man is qualified for a grand Christian experience 
and work. He is designed for a higher and better place than 
that of a saloon-keeper ; yea, more than that of a successful 
business man. When the truth fully dawns upon him, and his 
heart is fixed on God, he will rapidly advance from grace to 
grace, and gift to gift, until his spiritual boundaries are 
widened to a capacity far above the average believer. 

The trial Mr. Murphy endured in this species of contact 
with a man, who was esteemed a dear friend, was but a link 
in the chain of events that was now being forged in the great 
foundry of the Almighty, for the purpose of separating forever 
the kingdom of the Prince of Darkness from the spiritual 
domain soon to be added to the government of the Son of 
God. He was thus to lose his trust in man, and, in the great- 
ness of his soul, to seek a holier and more enduring repose for 
it. Experiences so deep and afflicting are uniformly pregnant 
with the most invaluable blessings, and productive of the 
highest good, to every one who is not beyond the reach of 
hope. 

But we will return to the statement furnished. Mr. Murphy 
continued : 

" My wife knew nothing of my arrest. My children were 
ignorant of it. The sudden misfortune to me had not yet 
reached their ears or hearts. 

u Soon we came to the dark door of the jail. It stood open 
and I stepped into it. Never shall I forget the first moment 
in which I entered the building. 

" I was thrust into the little dungeon of about six feet by 
three in size. It contained a little iron bed-stead, having upon 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 4 ?9 

it a pillow of straw and an army blanket stretched over it. 
Here thoughts of the past crowded upon me. The voice that 
came to me first was that of my sainted mother. I could see 
her sweet face and hear her once more. I thank God that it 
is utterly impossible to tear from the heart the memory of a 
good mother. Then, I could understand what the poet meant, 
in his beautiful language : 

" ' I hear a voice thou canst not hear, 
Which says "thou shalt not stay; " . 
I see a hand thou canst not see, 
Which beckons me away !' 

"Yes, in the silence of that lone place, I could hear the old 
familiar voice. And there I remained, suffering all the terri- 
ble delirium that it is possible for a poor victim of intemper- 
ance to endure. Of course, I was shut away from the world. 
I was altogether deserted by everybody except my faithful 
wife and children. And may God bless these ; they never 
deserted me; they 'never said. an unkind word to me. Con- 
stantly, almost, they passed and repassed in review before me. 

" In this place I remained for a considerable time. It was 
evidently designed that I should have somewhat of leisure 
with my thoughts. My condition was one of extreme sadness. 
But, eventually, I realized the truth of the lines : 

" l God moves in a mysterious way, 
His wonders to perform, 
He plants His footsteps in the sea, 
And rides upon t*he storm ! ' " 

Thus we have touchingly presented us the account by Mr. 
Murphy of his incarceration for habitual drunkenness. It is 
not only full of interest and instruction, but thoroughly con- 
firms all we* have said of the remarkable character of the man. 
It shows how deep was the fountain of feeling within him for 
others, notwithstanding his wretched course as an inebriate. 

There are great numbers of people around us who believe 



80 THE TRUE PATH ; 

that a man, full of the milk of human kindness, and having 
proper respect and love for his family, cannot possibly pursue 
such a course of dissipation as did Mr. Murphy ; that any one, 
of the nature and disposition we have accorded him, could not 
but revolt at such conduct, even in the very midst of the in- 
dulgence of his appetite. 

We differ from all such. In times of innocence and 
thoughtlessness the system becomes poisoned. A depraved 
taste is formed. This grows as fully into power over the man 
as do the most relentless and fatal fevers. And the men of 
kindness are among those most easily overcome by the malady. 
They may resist and struggle, but they are as unable to rise 
above their condition, as the fever patient is to overcome his, 
by physical effort. The natural tenderness and affection of 
the man is of little avail. 

In this view of the subject we are asked, " Why, if men are 
thus overcome, and irresponsible, do our statutes condemn and 
punish ?" We answer, for the reason that, in the- present 
system of faulty government upon the liquor question, there 
seems to be no other remedy. The laws generally allow the 
liquors to be made and sold — therefore the distiller and dealer 
are under their protection. But the poor victims of these soul 
and body destroyers, are without the least protection. He can 
go into the tavern, or saloon, and be legally poisoned and 
crazed, so that he morally ceases to be responsible, and yet be 
made to suffer the consequences of his irrational, criminal acts. 
When it can be shown, as lias been, that out of one hundred 
per cent, of the murders in New York city, at least ninety-five 
per cent, are the result of drunkenness, it becomes thinking 
men to inquire whether it was really the man or the whiskey, 
the consumers, or the vendors and producers, who perpe- 
trated the crimes. Surely, where the result is so overwhelm- 
ingly against liquor, the conclusion is unavoidable, that the 
wrong men were made to snffer. But then, as matters stand, 
the creature of his appetite alone can be held to account. We 
compassionate every culprit, however heinous his crime, who 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 81 

can truly plead drunkenness in palliation of his acts. To our 
mind, it is something of a valid plea, the press and people 
generally to the contrary, notwithstanding. 

We are asked again, " Is not this an argument in favor of 
the Prohibitionists ? 5 ' No, certainly not ! They are right in 
principle, but unwise and indiscreet in practice. The few can- 
not control the many. Public sentiment cannot be outraged 
by the only representatives of its voice and will with im- 
punity. It would be as easy to overcome the use and abuse of 
liquor, in the present condition of the popular mind, by legis- 
lative enactments, as to pull down the skies. It is an impossi- 
ble thing, and the labors and arguments of the prohibitionists 
are not only ridiculous, but they greatly hinder, at a time like 
this, the devoutly-to-be-wished-for result. The masses must 
first be educated up to that point at which the influence of 
the manufacturer, vendor and consumer is at a discount. 

In reference to this subject, and at the risk of the charge 
of a partial digression, we will insert here the following ex- 
tract from an able paper prepared by the venerable and estim- 
able editor of the Reformed Church Messenger, Rev. 
Samuel R. Fisher, D. D., — a man who has throughout his life 
battled nobly against rum — and read before the temperance 
convention at Sea Grove, N". J., some time since : 

" To get public sentiment right on this subject, we must, 
however humiliating the very thought, go back to first princi- 
ples, as they prevailed in the earlier part of the campaign 
against intemperance. We must commence at the very foun- 
tain head of all public morals. The church, God's great 
institution and agency for moral reform, must be brought into 
its proper relation to the mighty evil, and induced to use its 
influences and power for its suppression. Not only its minis- 
try, the organs of its divine functions, but its membership, 
also., should be prevailed upon to adopt the principle of abstin- 
ence from the use of intoxicating liquors as a beverage, and 
to enforce its observance by example as well as by precept. 

"The youth and children of the church should likewise 



82 THE TRUE PATH; 

have the principle instilled into their minds by the training 
they receive in the family, and in the Sunday-school, as well 
as though the direct teaching of the church. 

" I have no confidence in the success of any means employed 
for the promotion of public morals, though it may assume a 
Christian name, which professes to prosecute its work inde- 
pendent of the agency of the church, or even by methods 
antagonistic to it. If the church, the greatest fountain head 
of morals, be once fully brought into right relations to. the 
evils of intemperance, the furtherance of the work of reform 
will be greatly facilitated. And, until this be done, little of a 
substantial nature can be accomplished. 

"Other proper appliances, outside of the church, must be 
brought to co-operate with it, and diligently employed to 
promote the same great end. These are the press, the public 
lecture, and the various temperance associations of a proper 
character. They cannot be too diligently or too faithfully 
applied. They must not, however, be used in a way that 
would antagonize them to the Church, or place them in an 
attitude that would indicate that they are intended to super- 
sede or even supplement its functions. They are to be em- 
ployed only as auxiliary to it, in its efforts to accomplish its 
objects, as the great conservator of public morals. 

"Much harm has been done to the cause, in the past, by 
failing to observe this principle, in the use of some of the 
appliances brought forward by the friends of temperance 
for the suppression of the evils flowing from the use of intoxi- 
cating liquors." 

To all the sentiments, expressed in these paragraphs, we 
heartily subscribe. They conform precisely to the opinions 
generally held by the friends of Gospel reform. 

But we will return to Portland. The weary and anxious 
mind of Mr. Murphy was almost constantly upon his house- 
hold. He realized their dependent condition, and the fact of 
their constant suffering. His soul agonized greatly in their 
behalf. His wife had borne him seven children, six of whom 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 83 

were about her and helpless. She was a patient, sincere, 
Christian, but the ordeal through which she was j)assing, she 
felt, was too severe. 

And so it was. Mrs. Murphy saw constant darkness. Her 
faith in God had alone kept her thus far. But her care and 
trials were great, and beyond endurance. Physically she was 
breaking. The race of life could not long continue under such 
strain. Would there be no dawn this side of the grave ? 



84 THE TRUE PATH; 



CHAPTER X. 

CAPTAIN CYRUS STURDIVANT. RELIGIOUS SERVICES IN THE 

JAIL. MR. MURPHY ATTENDS THE MEETING. A TRUE 

FRIEND. VALUABLE MEN. THERE IS HOPE FOE. YOU. 

POWER OF KINDNESS. LITTLE THINGS. NOBLE FEELINGS. 

" GOD BLESS YOU ! " 

In preparing men for, and leading them into, great events, 
God employs instruments. It matters not how manifest may 
be his purposes, or how circuitous and mysterious the paths of 
the ones selected, down somewhere in it all is an Israelitish 
maid to direct, or an Ananias to put his hands upon them. 

The case of Mr. Murphy was to be no exception to this. 
There was an important life before him, and an efficient per- 
son was now commissioned to direct him to it. That person 
was Captain Cyrus Sturdivant. He knew of the unlimited 
power of the gospel to save from the meshes of sin. And he 
understood its ability to destroy the last remains of the carnal 
nature. Prompted one day by the Divine Spirit to exert his 
influence, if possible, among the poor victims imprisoned in the 
jail, he applied to the sheriff for permission to come and talk 
with them. This was granted. And, as to the consequences 
of this man's visit and labor, we prefer here to repeat the 
somewhat thrilling story of Mr. Murphy : 

" To Captain Sturdivant," said he, "If I have been of any 
use in the world, under God, I owe all of it. He commenced 
his work on the Sabbath day. The great, dark entrance door 
was opened to the Christian people. Quite a number had 
collected together, and they came in singing : 




f/^t^^t*^ 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 87 

u ' All hail the power of Jesus' name; 
Let angels prostrate fall ; 
Bring forth the royal diadem, 
And crown him Lord of all,' &c. 

"I was sitting on the little iron bedstead in my cell, when 
the keeper came to the door, and looking at me, said : 

" i Mr. Murphy, we would like to have you come out and 
attend religious service.' 

" ' Please excuse me, I will remain here and not disturb 
your people,' was my prompt reply. 

" ' Come out ; these people are your friends, they will not 
injure you,' persisted the keeper. 

" There was something so kind and agreeable in the face of 
the man, that it produced a disposition of assent within me, 
and touched my heart. • Yet my answer was, — 

" 'I would sooner stay here.' 

" c Come on, Mr. Murphy,' he continued. 

"At this, I concluded I would go. Oh, how my heart had 
ached for a kind word ; for some one to say, 'Can I do any- 
thing for you ?' I then responded : 

" ' I will go out with you, I believe.' 

" I arose from my seat, stepped out the little open door, 
walked along about ten paces, and sat down with the rest of 
the prisoners. There was Captain Cyrus Sturdivant. His 
back was turned toward me as I walked along the corridor. 
He appeared to me then as a larger man than he is just now. 
When he turned about he was weeping as a mother sometimes 
weeps Tor her child. As I looked at his face, I asked myself, 
' Who is he weeping for ; has he lost a son ?' No, it was 
evident that he had a heart for others. He was telling of 
God's goodness. His words were very sweet to me. He 
spoke to us of hungry wives and children. And, at that mo- 
ment, it seemed I could see my poor wife and children before 
me. As he continued to talk, it seemed to me that my 
imagination never realized so powerfully, as it did at that 
time, the presence of the objects of my affections. My 



88 THE TKUE PATH ; 

children seemed to be about me ; and my dear wife to stand 
in my presence, as calm and patient as ever, saying not one 
word. I queried, ' Does anyone care for me V i I wonder if 
there is a friendly hand here to be extended to me V And I 
said to myself, c Oh what, would I not give to sit down with 
that man and tell him the sorrow of my heart ! ' Nobody said 
anything to me, and I spoke to no one. In spite of myself the 
tears would course down my cheeks. 

"After the meeting I desired to hurriedly get away. I 
wanted to get into the little dark room, out of sight, so that I 
could, in some way, give expression to the grief that was 
almost consuming me. I was walking along the corridor, 
when a step came after me, followed quickly with a tap on my 
shoulder. My hand was instantly seized and Captain Sturdi- 
vant stood before me." 

It is but proper, we think, that this interesting narrative 
should be interrupted here with a view to the offering of a 
few sentences of comment. In just such a way does every 
true friend of our Lord Jesus work. Not for self ; not for 
appearance or reputation. But, tearing away from his sur- 
roundings, leaving his friends and helpers to care for them- 
selves, he springs in the direction of the perishing. 

The recital of the good man's course reminds us, greatly, of 
the bravery and sacrifice that attaches to the noble creature 
who leaps into the sea to save a human life. True, there is 
not the same risk ; but there is the same impulse, and a 
Christian courage — that highest development of all that is 
good in man — that always endures the test more than any- 
thing of the natural mind. Such men deserve the love and 
esteem of all Christians, and will assuredly receive even a 
more glorious recompense at the hands of the righteous judge, 
when he shall come. 

Nowhere can better, firmer friends of all mankind be found, 
than among those who labor down in the ranks of the poor 
and fallen ; who go out into the alleys, lanes and by-ways, 
and down into the huts, sheds and cellars, or out into the 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 89 

market-places and prisons, after souls. We honor them, in 
our hearts, whatever their creed, or position, or education, or 
previous life. We look up to the pulpit, and say from force 
of circumstances — sometimes quite charitably — they are men, 
and friends of God. But we look out upon the humble evan- 
gelists and missionaries of the Cross and say, from impulse, 
they are friends of God and man. 

Such persons should never be allowed to hide themselves 
away from us. The world is in want of all their friendship, 
actively exercised. To undervalue them appears to be tanta- 
mount to wickedness. To disregard their worth is to refuse 
to gather the gold that lies about our pathways. A single one 
of such men is more than all earthly treasures, from the cattle 
upon a thousand hills to the great metallic veins that course 
the geological eras of the globe. Is there cause for dislike, or 
envy among such as hold higher places ? Speedily remove it. 
Rather, pray God to heal your heart, than that you should use 
indifference or coldness toward them. Good men, those who 
are deeply such, in the work of their lives, are always scarce. 
They merit recognition, encouragement and universal respect. 
There is much of kindness among men, and no bounds to the 
vast amount of individual friendships. But the genuine 
friends of our common humanity are like finest-carat diamonds, 
very rare and worthf ul. 

We will now return to Mr. Murphy's story : 

" The first words of Captain Sturdivant to me were, — 

" ' I am sorry to see you here. Would you not like to be 
sober, as you once were, and stop the business of selling liquor, 
and be at home with your wife and children ? ' 

" ' Yes, I would like to be respected. I do not want to be 
in the business of selling liquor. But, 5 after a slight pause, I 
continued, ' hardly a hope remains for me.' 

" Upon this reply, the good-hearted man immediately pulled 
me close to his side, and said : 

" ' There is hope for you ; and, if you will only make an effort 
to help yourself, we will help you ; and God will help you.' 



90 THE TEUE PATH ; 

" Oh, how sweetly these words came to my heart. I shall 
never forget them. And as I looked up, and into his face, I 
saw the tears coursing thick and fast down his cheeks. Then 
I said to myself, c God helping me, I will make an effort to 
become a sober man.' And I can say I secured the victory 
over the terrible evil of intemperance through the kindly 
touch and words of this Christian." 

It may be well here to indulge in a passing reflection upon 
the power of kindness. A single word, and even look, rightly 
and timely given, has not only brought light and salvation to 
a soul, but been the means, in the end, of lifting hundreds 
and thousands from the sloughs of sin to the Rock of right- 
eousness — from deep depravity to true manhood. 

The brief work of Captain Sturdivant, and its results, calls 
to mind another instance of the glorious consequences of a few 
kind words : 

On a certain Sabbath evening, many years ago, — perhaps 
twenty-live or thirty — a reckless young man was idly loung- 
ing under the elm trees in the public square of Worcester, 
Massachusetts. He had become a wretched waif on the cur- 
rent of sin. His days were spent in the waking remorse of 
the drunkard ; his nights were passed in the buffooneries of 
an ale-house. As he sauntered along, out of humor with him- 
self and with all mankind, a kind voice saluted him. A 
stranger laid his hand on his shoulder, and said in cordial 
tones, " Mr. Gough, go down to our meeting at the town-hall 
to-night. 5 ' A brief conversation followed, so winning in its 
character, that the reckless youth consented to go. He went ; 
he heard the appeals there made. With trembling hand he 
signed the pledge of total abstinence. " By God's help he kept 
it, and keeps it yet. 

The poor boot-crimper who tapped him on the shoulder, good 
Joel Stratton, has gone to heaven. But the youth he saved 
is to-day the foremost of reformers on the face of the globe. 

Methinks, when we listen to the thunders of applause that 
greet John B. Gough on the platform, Ave are hearing the 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 91 

echoes of that tap on the shoulder, and of that kind invitation 
under the ancient elms of Worcester. 

Thus, also, when we see the crowds of drinking men walk 
from their slavery, with even the chains clanking about their 
feet, into the moral air and freedom of Qospel temperance, we 
seem to hear from the corridor of the Portland jail the kindly 
fall of Capt. Sturdivant's hand upon the shoulder of the 
coming reformer. And the conclusion imposed upon us is, 
that we would rather have the reward, that comes of that lit- 
tle act, that enjoy the highest place, with all its best honors 
and emoluments, in the gift of any nation or age. 

Little things ! How the thoughts of them crowd our mind. 
They, the means usually employed by Jehovah in the produc- 
tion of the most wonderful events. They rise up alongside 
the honored and well-heralded things of life, and throw their 
mightier shadows across them. They have often their origin 
in the brain of childhood, and eventually wind their slender 
threads about households, social systems and nations, until the 
whole world of hearts are all haunted by their memories. In 
truth, we are prone to believe that all things truly great are 
but grown up little things. 

Shall we not regard them, then ? Shall we not tap a poor 
fallen man on the shoulder in behalf of a great suffering hu- 
manity ? Shall we not offer a tear on the side of devoted 
mothers and loved ones in heaven ? Is it, finally, not better 
that we should engage at every possible opportunity in doing 
some little thing for Christ, and for souls, than that we should 
idle away our lives in failures at so-called big things ? 

Again taking up our narrative, do we not see how noble 
feelings are aroused under heavenly influences — how graces, 
which do not thrive and bloom in the hot blaze of the 
world, can be brought into full play, down about the grates 
and bars of even prison life. For, as Capt. Sturdivant was 
about to leave Mr. Murphy, after the very limited interview 
described, the latter imploringly asked : 



92 THE TRUE PATH ; 

" Will you please go and see my wife and tell her to keep 
up courage?" 

"I will," was the quick and earnest response. 

"And will you come and see me again ?" rejoined Mr. Mur- 
phy, as his visitor was passing out, his countenance and his 
whole demeanor betokening the deep interest felt in the re- 
quest. 

" O, yes ! I will come and see you again. And may God 
bless you !" were the hurried words of the great and good man 
as he passed out of the door. 

Capt. Sturdivant was gone. Not so his last words. They 
rang in the ears of the prisoner, until their vibrations spread 
through every avenue and recess of the soul. They recalled 
the mother's blessing, in the cottage by the sea, and the well- 
formed but long-neglected purposes of the ambitious Irish 
boy. " God bless you !" seemed to fill his cell. The words 
lingered with him during the remainder of that solemn holy 
day. And at evening, when alone, in the deepness of his sor- 
row, and when the Spirit of Evil came to him, as frequently 
before, and said, " You have no friends ; there are none you 
can trust," a beautiful form immediately came and ministered 
unto him, and said, " God bless you !" 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 93 



CHAPTER XI. 

A WEEK OF SUFFERING. — THE WORDS PUT INTO HIS MOUTH. 

INFLUENCES OF THE SPIRIT ESSENTIAL. PLAN TO BE AD- 
HERED TO. A NOTABLE DAY. GREAT RELIGIOUS MEETING 

IN JAIL. ESPIED HIS WIFE.— A BOUQUET AND A FOND MEET- 
ING. SOUGHT OUT BY A LOVING COMPANY. 

A long week had now begun its round in the prison. Mr. 
Murphy hourly, as time heavily dragged along, had his mind 
upon his family. While the woe of his own heart began to 
oppress him, he more keenly felt for that of those dear to him. 
and upon whom he had placed the most grievous and grind- 
ing of burdens. His sins appeared more fearful than ever. A 
mountain of evil, sufficient to overwhelm him at every turn, 
met his thoughts. How could he flee his degradation ? Was 
there no place of comfort? Would his punishment never 
end? 

These and similar thoughts, troubled him each day ; and 
thus, so fevered and perturbed had his mind become, before 
the hours of rest arrived, that he paced the little cell, through- 
out whole nights, suffering most exquisite anguish. He 
fancied he heard the pleading voices of the little home circle ; 
that he saw the pale visage of her whom he had sworn to love, 
comfort, honor, and keep, in sickness and health ; and, that 
he especially heard the call of the little boy, whom his heart 
most dearly loved, close by him in his room. 

He has assured us that, after, at several times, lying down 
awhile, he has gotten up and walked about his cell as if in 
search of his child, and felt impressed that the little fellow 



04 THE TBUE PATH ; 

must be at hand, and could almost be seen. At such times, 
there were two sentences to recall him to his lonely situation, 
and soften its severity, — the one, the kind remark, " There is 
hope for you ;" the other, the solacing words, " God bless 
you !" 

Here we catch unmistakable glimpses of the facts that 
Captain Sturdivant was first led by the Spirit to this apostle, 
for his awakening ; and that the words were put into his 
mouth, by which the great soul should be fitly leavened for 
the approaching Sabbath. Of all other things, which might 
have been uttered, w T e incline to the belief that nothing else 
than was uttered could have been equally effective. In Mr. 
Murphy's case they were all potent, and the words of Infinite 
Wisdom. 

The instruction of Christ, " Take no thought how or what 
ye shall speak ; for it shall be given you in that same hour 
what ye shall speak," were to the disciples at first. But, as 
the whole range of God's teachings and promises, they were as 
well to their followers and the Church forever. When men, 
with great confidence in human knowledge, exhaust their best 
efforts of mind in a thorough preparation for Christian work, 
they of necessity antagonize the injunction. 

We feel led here to step out further, into a somewhat side 
issue, and ask, Why was it said, " Take no thought how or 
what ye shall say?" Why, also, "In that same hour? " Why 
should the Master have enjoined these things except for high, 
important, and most sacred reasons ? And, if so essential in 
the proclamation of Divine Truth, then, it is not equally so 
now ? 

Do men say, however, that the demands of education, of 
circumspection in theological and philosophical discussion, in 
these times, are such as to require great precision and prepar- 
ation ? We reply that the very claim is profane in character. 
It assumes that the wisdom and preparation of man, under an 
educated system, is above that of the Holy Ghost. 

No, in these days, when sophistry and skepticism are highly 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. ' V5 

skilled, more than in those of man's comparative ignorance, 
do we need the enlightening influences of God. And at no 
time do we require to lean more heavily and perfectly upon 
the guidance of the Spirit in all our thoughts, than when the 
Church is well burdened with commentaries and criticisms, 
and when these stand in about as close proximity, oftentimes, 
as the North and South Pole. We greatly prefer the Bible 
with prayer to the Bible and all other human means, espe- 
cially to the taking of thought how or what, and then doing it 
for a whole week or month beforehand. 

Another fact, is evidence, per se, of the correctness of 
these views. It is, that when devout believers have tested 
for any reasonable time, and under reasonable circumstances, 
the two methods, they have promptly and freely decided in 
favor of the Spirit doing the work, in His own way, and in 
the self -same hour. 

Before leaving these thoughts, we will remark, that we ad- 
mit the necessity of a certain method of preparation of Gospel 
labor, we understand the " how," or " what " to refer to the 
language and subject-matter. We require arrangement of 
subject. It were foolish to question it. But there is a prep- 
aration that is as high as the Holy Spirit ; a preparation 
as frequently slighted by preachers, as regular means of grace 
are by laymen. We may learn the wisdom of men as thor- 
oughly as Moses did that of the Egyptians. It will only place 
us at advantage. But we must, withal, have the wisdom of 
God. 

In the work of the Church, and particularly in the sacred 
desk, all idea of appearing to advantage, of saying fine things, 
beautiful things, sensational things, and hitting things, is pre- 
posterously absurd and should be abandoned. The man should 
be hidden, and Christ held up. The advice of Jesus, in brief, 
should be obeyed to the full extent of its import, that we 
should "take no thought as to how or what" And if this 
were adhered to, the remainder of the sentence, " For it shall 
be given you in that same hour, what" &c, would harmonize 



96 THE TKTTE PATH; 

with pulpit experiences. One result, at least, inevitably, 
would be, a mighty tearing down of the strongholds of sin. 
And still another, and important one, that unconverted and 
ungodly men would flee the sacred calling as speedily as cer- 
tain little rodents are said to flee a burning store-house, or 
sinking ship. 

As we have said, at the beginning of this chapter, time hung 
heavily upon our subject in the Portland prison. He anx- 
iously awaited the developments of another holy day, and 
looked with a peculiar eagerness toward it. At last, after a 
partial rest the previous night, it opened beautifully and 
brightly. And now, that we may omit nothing from the 
most important feature in this biography, we will give the 
revelations of Mr. Murphy, as he has one by one unfolded 
them in their proper order, doubtless furnishing everything of 
any especial value in connection with that most notable 
event : 

"The Sabbath day came and great interest was shown 
throughout the city. It was generally known that the Chris- 
tian people had commenced to worship in the jail. A large 
number of people early gathered about the building. They 
principally came to join in the worship of God, and you 
may rest assured there was quite a crowd. 

" I did not suppose that my wife would come to see me. 
At least I hoped she would not. But it was ordered other- 
wise. Of course I knew that, out of the gladness of her * 
heart, she would come, if it did not occur to her how painful 
it would be to me to see her at such a place and under such 
surroundings. But it seems that where hearts are true they 
cannot easily be separated. Prison doors cannot long keep 
them apart. You may even put a man on the gallows, the 
redeeming power of love will claim its own. 

" The doors of the prison were soon opened wide, and a con- 
tinuous line of people entered. How different my feelings 
now, from those I had, at the same hour, one week previous. 
I actually longed to see the face of that Christian man, Cap- 



.OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 97 

tain Sturdivant. Through the previous week I prayed from 
my heart, while alone in my cell, that God would send him to 
me. I longed for some friendly hand, and for deliverance, so 
that I might, liberated from all bonds, go to my innocent 
children and queenly wife. 

"As the crowds came in they sang, as before. It was truly 
a beautiful and inspiring sight. When the place was well 
filled, hundreds of people had to be turned away. 

" When I lifted up my head and looked over among the 
throng, my eyes fell upon my dear wife. She had stepped 
just inside the door, so as to be out of sight as much as possi- 
ble, dear child. I see her sweet face now. The moment I 
looked upon her, she stepped aside, to be away from my gaze 
as soon as possible. The little children were with her. They 
had hold of their mother's dress and I could see them looking 
through the audience to see where their father was. 

"As I was seated there on that occasion, I felt in my heart 
that I would have thanked God, had he taken me to himself 
in an instant of time. My experience was of such a terribly 
painful nature, that my poverty of language forbids me to 
attempt a description of it. 

" When I saw my wife, her lips parted, and her eyes filled 
with tears. I had just taken my seat, and kept looking at my 
children. Truly, I realized that my life was far from desir- 
able. 

"At this point, my oldest daughter, Mary, who was then 
ten years of age, parted from her mother and pressed along 
through the audience. She had a beautiful bouquet in her 
hand. Evidently she had brought it to her father. I saw 
that the face of the dear child had become as white as linen. 
Soon she was at my side. She tried to shake hands with me, 
but standing as she was, she could not very well, and, passing 
her arms around my neck, she said : 

"' Father, oh, father, we have been lonesome for you !' 

" ' Daughter, I have been lonesome for you,' I replied, and, 



98 THE TKTTE PATH ; 

at once, added, 'and God helping, I shall make an effort to 
be a sober man.' " 

Following this scene, we are drawn toward the assemblage 
of people on every hand. A lively interest was apparent 
upon their countenance. Here and there a few quietly en- 
gaged in an occasional interchange of remarks. Bat the 
most attractive circumstances of the hour were those which 
concerned the numerous prisoners present. As the daughter of 
the ex-landlord and saloon-keeper pushed along through the 
gathering toward her father, having her bouquet in hand, not 
a few eyes followed her and scanned closely the meeting of 
the two, together with its little phases and effects. Not a 
few persons were moved to tears, and perceptibly agitated. 

The worship of God had begun. It was impressive, and of 
quite a spiritual character. The singing, prayers, and remarks 
were highly interesting and important, and contributed greatly 
toward the softening of hearts that heretofore were stoical in 
such things. The visitors knew full well that their labors were 
not in vain, and would surely be attended with good conse- 
quences in the end. 

We cannot here notice the various incidents of the services, 
as it is our business to record only those things which concern 
the subject of our biography. Capt. Sturdivant, with others, 
had become deeply interested in the case of Mr. Murphy. His 
case was an important one. He was well known, and, doubt- 
less, many prayers had ascended within a short time in his 
behalf. As soon, therefore, as the services had concluded, he 
was sought out by the good man, as well as by his devoted 
wife and children. And these, in the anxiousness of their 
souls, accompanied him to his little cell, there to sympathize 
with and cheer him in his desires to attain to firm and deep 
resolves against his former mode of life. 

Can any one, this side actual experience, form an intelligent 
opinion of the thoughts and emotions which crowded the 
breasts of that living company, as one by one, they stepped 
into the cold and gloomy cell ? It appears to us that under 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 99 

few other influences could there be a more active appeal to 
general Christian sympathy ; and that if ever the great Divine 
Heart especially throbbed and was disturbed in behalf of 
poor, unfortunate creatures, it was on this solemn Sabbath oc- 
casion. 



100 THE TRUE PATHj 



CHAPTER XII. 

PRAYER-MEETING IN* THE DARK DUNGEON. — MR. MURPHY ? S 

CONVERSION. THE NEW BIRTH.- — A SUBJECT WORTHY 

ATTENTION. LOOSE RELIGION. — DAYS OF MIRACLES. — A 

TRANSFORMATION. — LIGHT HEARTS. — KEPT IN PRISON. 

ASKS TO CONDUCT A PRAYER-MEETING.-— SEVENTY-FIVE 
PRISONERS CONVERTED. DIVINE NATURE OF THE WORK. 

A feeling of sacredness, bordering upon awe, belongs to 
this portion of our narrative. When people, singly, go into 
their closets to commune with God, they cannot but realize 
that, being alone with their Almighty Helper, a deep solem- 
nity attaches to the service. A species of peculiar sanctity is 
in the air they breathe. But, when we go down to the dun- 
geon, in the prison, and there behold the most loving and 
faithful of burdened souls, gathered about their fallen husband, 
father and friend, for the purpose of unitedly appearing before 
the King of Kings, in petition, we feel a sense of oppression 
and profound reverence. 

A distinguished man once, upon a corner of a street, in a 
European city, heard the nervous and peculiarly sweet voice 
of a child engaged at singing to God's. praise. His eyes, in- 
stantly turned in the direction of the sound, fell upon a little 
blind boy, whose face seemed radiant with the rapture of a 
devout heart. At once the hat was removed from his head, 
and his chin fell upon his broad chest. A passing friend said 
to the man, " Why stand here in the broiling sun with bared 
head ? Is anything wrong?" Then looking up, for a moment, 
he replied, "Do you hear that voice, and see that face? The 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 101 

little fellow is blind to the wonderful beauties of this inspiring 
morning. And I said to myself, ' If he can so offer praise, 
while denied the sight of all that is lovely in nature, surely 
God must be very near.' Therefore, I took off my hat." 

Here, too, we feel like bowing the head, and falling down 
before the Majesty on High. 

The worship of God now commenced in the cell. We will 
give the occurrences of the brief little service, in the words of 
Mr. Murphy : 

" Capt. Sturdivant was close by my side. He placed his 
arm about my neck, and said, 6 Mr. Murphy, give your heart to 
Christ and all will be well with you ! ' 

"In a little while, my wife was by my side, with the 
children. 

"I hardly dared to look to heaven, I had been so un- 
fortunate. But a ray of hope came to my poor, aching heart, 
and then, with my poor suffering wife and children, we all 
knelt down together upon the cold, dark prison floor, and 
supplicated God's Throne for Divine mercy and grace. 

" The work was then and there done. I arose from my 
knees with an evidence of God's acceptance of me. Blessed 
be His name. I knew, for myself, that : 

"He breaks the power of cancelled sin; 
He sets the prisoner free ; 
His blood can make the foulest clean ; 
His blood availed for me ! " 

In this, we place before the reader the declarations of Mr. 
Murphy. We have no right to question them for a moment. 
And, while we deplore the indulgences of violent physical 
effort, in the work of the soul, as uncalled for and unreasonable, 
we have the most unbounded confidence in such a service and 
meeting as occurred in the Portland prison, and do not, for a 
moment, doubt the result claimed. 

We believe there is an urgent necessity, on the part of every 
human being, for a " new birth ; " that it merits the most 



102 THE TRUE PATH; 

• 
prompt and careful attention ; and that Christians should con- 
tinually , carry within them the evidence and knowledge of 
Divine favor, however much we may differ as to the proper or 
best means of its obtainment. 

Our observation tempts us to the conclusion that, between 
the denominations resorting to special efforts and intense 
feeling, and those continuing in the beaten track, without 
manifesting any improvement, or real change of life, both 
have good cause for fault-finding and remonstrance. No one 
can fail to see a high middle-ground between the two. Bat, 
evidently, neither are able just now to occupy. The one is 
held back by the weight of its success, and the crowds about 
the wheels of its machinery ; the other, by the fear that it be 
charged with sympathy with, and an approach to, the former. 
This is an unfortunate state of affaire. It shows plainly that 
the day of indifference to the carnal mind, and a rigid ad- 
herence to the Divine behests, has not yet dawned upon the 
Church. 

We think, however, that the time is not remote in which all 
systems of religion will exhibit a high esteem for true piety, 
and make it the great condition to responsible posts. And we 
believe, too, that the extraordinary disregard of the plain re- 
quirements of Christ, in his conversation with ISIicodemus, 
must yield, in the not distant future, to their full considera- 
tion and practice. . 

In these remarks we do not harbor what some might desig- 
nate as objectionable tendencies. On the contrary, we look 
with much of misgiving and apprehension upon the un- 
restricted latitude that has allowed thousands of unthinking 
persons to even widen the breach created between the ref- 
ormation and dissenting churches in the seventeenth century. 
But we are clear that the change demanded by our Lord 
merits more than a passing nod; that it requires that our 
tastes, habits, appetites, thoughts, feelings and proclivities, in 
a word, our natures, shall experience a radical change, how- 
ever that may be brought about ; whether by a careful and 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 103 

systematic training, that makes men intelligent Christians, 
void of all doubt and delusion ; or, by the sudden method, 
by which a large proportion break through the net before they 
can be hauled to the limitless shores. 

Our purpose, in these remarks, is to do good ; to honor 
Christ. We dislike a loose religion ; a religion that is just 
none at all ; a religion that don't look beyond the church, or 
above the ordinance ; a religion that has as much of faith and 
works in it as the "clouds have of marble or brass. There is 
everywhere, a need for a consciousness, a certainty r , on the 
part of church members, that they " are not their own, but 
belong unto their faithful Saviour, Jesus Christ, who with his 
precious blood hath fully satisfied for all their sins, and de- 
livered them from all the power of the devil." 

These thoughts bring us again to the statement of Mr. 
Murphy, that he, in the solemn meeting had in his cell, arose 
from his knees, with an evidence of God's acceptance of him. 
We receive it, just as all other wonderful things, and can only 
here say, in regard to it, that God's miraculous power did not 
cease with Paul's conversion, neither are the days of miracles 
as much gone by as many would make believe. 

When Mr. Murphy's family surrounded him, they had been 
poorly provided for, and he admits that they were in a starv- 
ing or semi-starving condition. Yet all sight of the fact was 
lost. There was a beloved husband and father, just saved 
from the jaws of destruction. He had just consecrated his 
heart to God, and his life to total abstinence. The interests 
of the soul sat as cap-sheaves over those of the body, and all 
were in rapture. Here we will put on record the words of the 
saved man : 

" Then everything became transformed. The very granite 
of the prison seemed to me to be cut and carved so as to ex- 
hibit the forms of angels." • 

Immediately upon the close of this service in Mr. Murphy's 
cell, his wife and children, with Captain Sturdivant, left the 
jail. Their steps, like their hearts, were light. The skies 



104 THE TBUE PATH ; 

were more attractive, and all nature more fascinating to the 
care-worn wife and successful evangelist than before. Their 
very countenances seemed to say to the critical observer, 
" News ! News ! ! " How the miseries of a faithful wife 
seemed freely compensated ! 

After the reformation of Mr. Murphy he was not promptly 
liberated. This was evidently the purpose of the great Ruler 
of Earth. Man cannot defeat His plans. He had been re- 
markably good and condescending in visiting one cell and one 
soul. There were seventy-five more souls within that place 
of incarceration, all of which were as precious to Him. The 
first fruits were for Him — for His great work of reform 
throughout the land. But there were the later fruits for the 
comforting and healing of the various anxious households. 

For a considerable time afterwards, Mr. Murphy remained a 
prisoner. He meditated long and well upon the step he had 
taken, and the experience he had attained to, and gradually 
entered upon his plans for the future. It was thus, in the 
jail, that originated the great reformatory wave now deluging 
our goodly land. 

. One day he conceived the project of carrying the work, be- 
gun in his own soul, among the unconverted men around him. 
He sent a petition to Sheriff Perry asking his permission to 
hold a prayer meeting. This, as in the case of the request 
made by Captain Sturdivant of the same official, was granted. 
The meeting was held, and was one of powerful influence for 
good. An impression was made such as could not have been 
readily accomplished under less interesting circumstances. 

Mr. Murphy had grounds for hopefulness. He arose from 
his bed, often at night, and prayed long and earnestly that the 
poor prisoners might all be saved by grace divine. 

" And in the silence of the night," he has said, "on such 
occasions,, the word came to my soul, that God had a work for 
me to do." 

"I then said to the Lord," he continued, "If Thou wilt 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 105 

give me to see much fruit from this work, it shall be the evi- 
dence to me that; I am called to preach the gospel." 

Mr. Murphy did not have a great while to wait. In the 
course of a little time, he says, he saw the seventy-five men 
brought securely from the evil of their lives. God gave him 
every man in the jail. 

This was an unexampled success ; enough to encourage any 
believer to feel that he was a chosen vessel. The effect of 
his work became apparent in the course pursued toward the 
men. The sheriff discontinued the practice of locking them 
up. They were put upon their honor. Contrary to the previ- 
ous custom of the place, they were permitted to go out into the 
yard, and not one of them ever violated his word with the 
keeper. 

Thus, it is evident, in the work of this man, that Jesus con- 
tinues to confound the wise and great of this world by using 
the despised among men ; that the same Wisdom which 
passed by the schools of the prophets, and the candidates for 
the priesthood, and selected humble fishermen, is yet exercised 
in behalf of sinners ; and that the same Power which disre- 
garded Gamaliel and the Sanhedrim, and selected one who 
was a favored pupil and follower, and smote him down, that 
he might be fully qualified for His service, is still controlling 
the destinies of our race. 

No man was ever *more certainly led into the cause of 
righteousness, for an active and prominent part, than Mr. 
Murphy. He is a singular adaptation of the human to the 
work of the Divine. His character is one that it would be 
useless to attempt to lay bare. So far as it concerns his work, 
this cannot be done. The blade in his hand forbids any such 
design. The Sword of the Spirit scarcely admits of a proxim- 
ity for so weak and foolish a purpose. The power is of God. 
The man would be as a child in the gigantic conflict without 
that power. Yet such power is only given where souls are 

great, and broad, and deep and alhcapacious. 
5* 



106 THE TRUE PATH; 



CHAPTER XIII. 

HIS IMPRISONMENT A SCHOOL. — NO HELP FOR HIS WIFE.— - 

DENIED HERSELF BREAD. NO MEALS THAT DAY. MRS. 

MURPHY'S SAD LETTER. A BITTER NIGHT. RELEASED. A 

COMPLETE WRECK. THE MEETING. AN EARNEST PRAYER. 

. ERECTS A FAMILY ALTAR. FRUIT AND GARMENTS 

BROUGHT. NEW DUTIES AND TRIALS. MRS. MURPHY'S 

DEATH. A SAD FAMILY. THE MOST IMPORTANT OF 

EVENTS. CANNOT BUT WORK. A COMPLETE PREPARATION 

FOR IT. 

As time went on, and the strange events at the Portland jail 
had been well noised about, a deep sympathy was created for 
the poor men denied their liberty. The popular heart became 
largely centered upon the prisoners, and was ready to demand 
the release of such, at least, as had not committed some felony 
of a grievous nature. 

And no one stood higher in public esteem than the once 
wretched inebriate and saloon-keeper wht> had been the means 
of so much good. His labors among, and in behalf of the ' 
salvation of, his fellows around him, were the subject of daily 
comment. He had already, before leaving the great dark 
walls as a freeman, made an impression that could not but put ■• 
him in the fore front in any attempt as a leader, teacher or 
lecturer. His imprisonment proved the entrande-way to a 
great and valuable life. He had only been to school. 

But while these things were so, few persons, as is usually 
the case, knew of the misery that existed in Mr. Murphy's 
household. This is best furnished in the following words of 
the lecturer :. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 107 

" They were in straitened circumstances. The landlord had 
notified my wife and her six little ones to get out of his build- 
ing. There was no one to help her. 

"What I suffered during that time God himself only knows. 
My wife denied herself bread to feed the children, as a good 
mother always will, and even to send me a bite by the children 
w T hen they came to see me. Finally, the children could not 
come ; they had no money to pay the car fare. 

•"It was on October 30, 1870, that I received a letter 
from my dear wife. It was the last one I ever received 
from her. It appears that she had had no meals that day, as 
she had nothing to cook. Johnny, the littlest of the six, while 
walking up and down the floor, had. turned round at last and 
pleaded to her : c Mother, haven't you got a piece of bread for 
me ? ' She opened the cupboard, but searched in vain. For 
the first time there was actually not even a crust or crumb for 
the ( pet,' for whom she had always been able to save at least 
something. 

"The mother's heart failed her, and then she sat down and 
wrote me this letter : 

" ' Dear Husband : — I have had a week of bitter trial. My 
strength is failing me. I cannot live long. Bat do not be 
discouraged. My trust is in God.' 

" This letter I received at night. I could not read it in my 
dark cell, but I managed to decipher the words by the gas in 
the corridor. 

" I walked my cell all that night. I cannot speak my experi- 
ence on that the most bitter night I ever spent in all my life. 
But it is past now, thanks be to God ! never to be lived over. 
I determined to put my trust in God. If I lived until morning 
I would show that letter to the keeper, and tell him the cir- 
cumstances, and ask him to go to Captain Sturdivant, the only 
earthly friend I knew. And when daylight came, God's good- 
ness came unto me. 

"I was released from prison through the efforts of my 
friend, Captain Sturdivant. On, my road home I heard a 



108- THE TRUE PATH ; 

familiar step behind me, approaching rapidly, and the next 
moment the arms of my son Willie were around my neck. 

" He whispered in my ear, ' We live down there, father ; 
come quick this way, and follow me. No one is looking.' The 
poor boy thought it was necessary to hide me. ' I am released, 
my boy !' I cried to him. 

" ' Blessed be io God, 5 he answered, as he fled to break the 
news to mother ; and in uearing the house the children came 
and flocked around me, and I felt like old times again." 

In the door-way, while yet at a little distance, Mr. Murphy 
saw his wife standing. Oh, how changed l^er figure and face ! 
A shudder crept over him as he beheld one, who had been so 
beautiful and true, now faded, trembling and almost crushed. 
She looked to him like a vessel, which had started upon the 
great bosom of life, with pure sails, majestic form and bright 
promises, but which, after struggling gallantly and faithfully 
through the most fearful of storms, was left at mid-ocean, a 
complete wreck. Now, the storm had been spent ; the clouds 
were broken ; the silver linings were far out where the wave- 
lets, in rhythmic succession, leaped upon and kissed the pass- 
ing clouds ; and the whole firmament was decorated with 
sheets of gold ; but the best and dearest of all objects was 
broken — yea, sinking, and would soon forever disappear from 
the surface. 

No wonder that Mr. Murphy felt a chill come upon him. 
No wonder that his previous hopes and buoyant emotions were' 
cast aside. And even now, we think, that he would be one of 
the last men, to touch the intoxicating glass, in this world ; 
that, at the very thought of the act, the white face of the 
sainted wife and mother would rise up before him and dash it 
to the ground. One *such experience as his should be enough 
to keep a world of men from the dread destroyer. 

We will return to the very touching account, given by Mr. 
Murphy, of his release and return to his home : 

" When I reached the door I met my wife, who folded me 
in her arms to her bosom. I can see her now as in a picture, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 109 

with her large wealth of golden hair hung carelessly over her 
shoulders. ' God helping nie, wife,' I said, 'I will never touch 
another drop of liquor, and never sell another drop !' " 

Quickly the home was entered. The soul of the Christian 
companion and mother, heretofore conscious of uninterrupted 
suffering, was now running over with a sense of gratitude. 
She could not longer withhold the meed due Him who had so 
fully answered her many pleadings by day and by night. She 
sunk down upon her knees, and, holding up her hands, tightly 
clasping those of her husband, offered thanks for Divine favor, 
and besought God, for Christ's sake, to give her husband 
strength to keep his resolution. 

Thus came on the new life of Francis Murphy in his family. 
Such occurrences could not but largely help to rivet the man 
and his purposes together. The beginning of any Christian 
life is attended with something of embarrassment. And' when 
there is a total want of sympathy, among those allied to us in 
daily struggles, our perplexities are manifold and serious. 
But in the case in point it was otherwise. The wife was a 
sterling believer, and held in high esteem the privilege of 
prayer. Surely, here was much of aid and comfort, at this 
all-important period of Mr. Murphy's life. 

The effect of the scene furnished is thus told, in a few sen- 
tences, by Mr. Murphy : 

" And then, all at once, things brightened, and I determined 
to erect a family altar. I said, ' I will go to Captain Sturdi- 
vant, who had rescued me, and tell him. ' 

" And that night he brought a lot of friends with him to 
erect it, and they brought fruit and garments for the little 
children. Oh ! you don't know how they needed them. My 
eyes cannot help filling with tears when I remember that 
crisis of my life." 

The duties and struggles of our convert now began. His 
family was large, and to him all eyes were naturally turned. 
He engaged at such employment as presented itself for the 
time, but felt far from contented in his narrow sphere. He 



110 THE TRUE PATH ; 

was, after a while, to enter upon a wider field of activity, but 
there was deep water between it and him. 

Three weeks had passed away, when Mrs. Murphy was 
seized with an attack of typhoid fever. The scorching em- 
brace of the disease soon produced the dreaded delirium. 
For fourteen days her husband and children watched and 
waited and toiled at her bedside. No attention was neglected. 
Every heart was bowed down and anxious. But the worst of 
all calamities was approaching. The physician soon found 
his skill exhausted in the vain hope to bring about a change. 
She never revived. Death entered the home, and put his 
hand upon the chief object of all its affections. 

It was in the month of December, 1870, when this terrible 
visitation came upon the Murphy family. The husband was 
filled with mourning, and would not be comforted. The little 
faces around him were tear-marked, and the eyes red with 
weeping. The world had often appeared dark and chilly to 
some of them — but, now, it was enveloped in gloom, and deso- 
lation stared at them from every side. 

After a few days, the loved form was removed. The un- 
dertaker, and his assistant, soon put away all traces of the 
funeral. The little dining-room was in its usual order. A 
few well-worn ornaments and bijouterie were here and there 
seen ; but all interest in them was gone. In the mother's 
room a coldness and heaviness rested everywhere. The bright 
December sunlight gleamed through the half -shaded windows, 
but it furnished nothing of warmth or cheer. There was 
some one absent. Something was wanting. Soon a little one 
began its woe. Mother was needed. The father might call 
to him the sad child, and speak of the bright, far-away land 
to which God had called their best and truer earthly friend ; 
but the sadness remained. None seemed to know why the 
kind Father should take hereaway, when she was wanted so 
much. 

We will now unwind the cords that have thus far allowed 
an undisturbed gaze at the home-scenes of a much stricken 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. Ill 

family, and let down the curtain that divides the life of Fran- 
cis Murphy, the inebriate, and Francis Murphy, the temper- 
ance Apostle. We could not possibly omit in the former, this 
most important of all events, since it looms up before us as the 
deepest and direst of all the mischief consequent upon the 
acts of a dissipated husband. It naturally belongs to the time 
when, little by little, the earth was rudely and ruthlessly 
shoveled from beneath the weary feet of the tender pilgrim, 
until at last, though the Sun of Righteousness,. and the zephyrs 
from the Eternal City fell refreshingly upon her, the grave 
swallowed its own victor. 

The closing scenes in the life presented, have kept with Mr. 
Murphy. They seem to have had their influence upon his 
labors until this hour. Now and then, they almost overcome 
him, as his heart grows warm and his words tremulous. 
Often, they hover about his thoughts, without direct refer- 
ence to them. His whole being often seems to leap backward 
and forward between the little grave mound in Wexford and 
that in Portland city. They surmount the ashes which he 
delights to honor. He would, from the love he bore them 5 
and the hallowed veneration in which their memories are held, 
yet do much for the good mothers and suffering wives of 
others. Notice his words, delivered on a recent occasion : * 

" I am doing this work because I cannot help it. I can 
avoid doing it no more than I can avoid breathing. There is 
no portion of life I do not seem to have tasted. There is not 
a man, who has passed through affliction, except that I have 
been called upon to do as much. I have been in the furnace 
when the form of the fourth was in it. I knew God was with 
me. 

" Could I but give others to see what I have seen, to feel 
what I have felt, and to pass through what I have done, none 
would be surprised at my eagerness. I found, beyond alt 
questioning, that God saves to the uttermost. No matter, if 
you have been a prisoner, and base rebel, He comes to you 
with more than a mother's love. ' 



112 THE TRUE PATH; 

" How quickly would tlie mother come to her boy, if she 
could, and put her hand fondly upon his head, and draw him 
lovingly to her breast ! A boy, even in rags, will try to make 
himself appear well before her who bore him. But she will 
not stop to see his rags ; she will see her face in his, and take 
him to her heart. She will not be content to take his hand, 
but will fall upon his neck. 

" So Christ sees His face in yours, if you will but believe 
in Him ; and wherever you may be, or however degraded, He, 
the once crucified, oppressed and bleeding, stands ready to 
fold you in His arms. Yea, He stands and knocks at the 
door of your heart, until His locks are wet with the dew of 
the evening. God always does His part." 

The temperance of Mr. Murphy began in religion, under 
soul convictions. Had he become a temperance man, without 
embracing Christ, he never could have entered upon this 
gigantic and holy warfare. Men can be temperance men 
without being Christians ; but no man can be a Christian 
without being a temperance man, however much debauchery 
and drunkenness may have blighted his faculties. Out of 
darkness and into light means a reformation in all things 
which have to do with the soul. 

The jail has been well called " his trysting-place with the 
Spirit of the new life that had been bequeathed him." When 
his time of confinement ended he walked forth a herald and 
leader and unfurled his ensign boldly to the breeze. For a 
brief season he was cast down beyond all taste for labor of 
almost any kind. He was tried by affliction. But he stood 
the ordeal manfully. And hereby he was made stronger for 
the sublime conflict awaiting him. 




THE "OLD HOME, 1 ' PITTSBURGH. 



PART III. 



A COMPLETE HISTORY 



OF THE 



MURPHY MOVEMENT, 



EMBRACING 



ANECDOTES, INCIDENTS AND SPEECHES. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 117 

PART III. 
A HISTORY OF THE MUBPHY MOVEMENT. 

CHAPTER XIV. 

murphy's career as a temperance orator opens. HIS 

STRUGGLES AND PROGRESS IN THE CAUSE OF REFORM. 

THE PUBLIC RECOGNIZES HIM AND HIS MISSION. THE 

GREAT PITTSBURGH REVIVAL. FRANCIS MURPHY BECOMES 

A HOUSEHOLD NAME THROUGHOUT THE LAND. 

Francis Murphy delivered his first lecture in the City Hall, 
Portland, on the 3rd day of April, 1873. A number of gen- 
tlemen who were highly interested in the noble cause of tem- 
perance, and interested in him, induced him to do this. 

The success of the event was very marked. The hall was 
crowded by a curious and eager crowd. Our subject was 
somewhat embarrassed as he stepped forward on the platform, 
and stood before all those eyes ; but this feeling was transi- 
tory. He forgot self and his surroundings, as he spoke of his 
life, and argued for his cause, rising often to sonorous elo- 
quence. The audience was moved to tears, and then to laugh- 
ter, when his well known, genial humor would burst out in 
quaint bits of rhetoric. 

That evening he received over sixty applications to lecture 
in other cities. He was amazed and delighted. 

He had felt that he failed in favorably impressing his audi- 
ence at first ; but here was substantial proof of his success. 
This result prompted him to continue the work he had com- 
menced. - He began a series of meetings in Portland, and 
delivered about forty lectures with most gratifying effect. 
A club was organized by those who reformed, and devoted 
Christians who longed to save the fallen, and did much to break 
down the bariiers of King Alcohol. Mr. Murphy's success 



118 THE TEUE PATH ; 

-was noised abroad ; and people in other parts of Maine cried 
out for him to come to them. He could not be deaf to their 
demands. He complied, and went from place to place telling 
of his reformation, and urging all to relinquish the use of in- 
toxicating liquor. Two years were nobly spent in the State 
of Maine, and were productive of great good ; and one passed 
in the State of New Hampshire with like result. Out west, 
where a large band of people had gathered together to fight 
rum, his name went with words of praise and joy. He was 
heralded as the savior of the fallen ; he was the appointed 
apostle of temperance. The aforesaid band of noble fighters 
in a most noble cause begged him to come West, and address 
the thousands of unfortunate beings in that section of the 
country. He went to Iowa and Illinois. In these States, his 
advent was hailed with exclamations of delight. Wherever 
he went, he did wonderful good ; and the people loved him. 
In Iowa and Illinois, no one is so well known, so respected, and 
so admired as Francis Murphy. His name is a household 
word. And hundreds upon hundreds fall down on bended 
knees, and pray to God to shower blessings on the head of 
him, who brought them out of the thick shadows of the valley 
of sin and death. 

He went to Freeport, by special request. In that town tem- 
perance was only made known by a small band of brave wo- 
men, who went from saloon to saloon praying. They could 
not boast of any signal success. Francis Murphy came, and • 
things assumed another aspect. He roused the town, and num- 
bers of people hitherto indifferent to the cause rushed forward 
and swelled the lists, under his magic spell moved to lead pure 
lives and eager to do good. His way was vigorous, manly and 
inspired. Every one felt he had been sent, and that he was 
there to save. His manner won all hearts. It was modest 
but manly, and his pathos was genuine. His appeals went 
forth, and were obeyed. He was accepted as the apostle of 
temperance. 

A very successful camp-meeting was conducted at Old Or- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 119 

chard Beach, in New York State, in the autumn of 1874. It 
was here that Mr. Murphy made one of his most famous 
speeches on temperance, carrying the immense concourse with 
him from the beginning to the end of it. Dio Lewis, that 
world-famed doctor and lecturer, was present, and, after our 
hero had taken his seat, was asked to address the people. He 
rose, and said, with great effect : " I cannot make a speech 
after Mr. Murphy. I have heard speeches for forty years ; 
have been on the rostrum myself for over twenty-live years ; 
but I have never heard such a speech as his to-day. In God's 
name, keep that man telling his story all over the land, every 
night, as long as his breath and strength are spared." 

These earlier years, though remarkable for the success of 
Murphy's temperance efforts — for he carried the hearts of 
thousands wherever he went, and gained innumerable signers 
to the pledge — were principally notable for their educa- 
tional influence on the man himself as a lecturer. Uneducated, 
with a mind untrained by early study and reading, though his 
imagination was burdened with rich stores of humor and 
pathos, and his heart burned with devotion to the cause of 
temperance reform, he yet needed the severe discipline of 
habit, the practical training in the art of public speaking, 
which were afterwards to make his name blaze like a meteor 
through the land. Murphy possessed that peculiar power of 
strong natures, the power of receptivity. His intellectual 
resources during these important years were fed by a thousand 
influences. He was absorbing the reserve forces so necessary 
to sustain a man on his level through long years of arduous 
toil. He was becoming the accomplished master of the instru- 
ments that God put in his hand to use to such purposes in the 
forging of great results. 

The temperance orator used his spare time in reading and 
furbishing the weapons in his intellectual armory to a high' 
degree of polish and sharpness. His style C9mmenced to rise 
to a higher dignity than of old, though he has always kept 
that conversational ease and directness, which on important 



120 THE TEUE PATH ; 

themes are so much more efficient in grappling the hearts of 
men than labored diction and well" rounded rhetorical 
periods. Above all, the well-spring of his power, his tremend- 
ous earnestness and conviction that he was called to his mis- 
sion by the voice of God himself, got deepened and settled by 
his experiences. Truly a Pentecostal harvest in the salvation 
of men had been vouchsafed him, and what might not be ex- 
pected of him by those who had early welcomed him, and 
foreseen the results that were to follow ! 

Francis Murphy was too humble, too sincere a Christian not 
to feel that the main fountain, wiiich fed his wonderful 
power, and dispensed its healing w r aters in a thousand limpid 
and healing rills and rivulets, came by the power of God. It 
was in recognition of this fact that the orator kept himself 
close to his Heavenly Father in prayer. His public addresses 
are full of devout acknowledgments of this source of 
strength, and a lesson might be read to the world through 
this striking illustration of the dependence of human effort on 
the inexhaustible source of all spiritual strength. 

It is in virtue of this fact, that Mr. Murphy has always 
linked religion with the temperance reform in every possible 
way. He had known from terrible experience how difficult it 
is for man to stand alone, to battle against temptation and the 
hydra evil of a giant appetite, without calling in every possi- 
ble aid and resource. He himself had realized the potent re- 
enforcement found in the warm Christian sympathy of indi- 
viduals and communities. So the Murphy work from the 
very outset placed itself side by side with the religious ele- 
ment in society, and enlisted not merely the aid of the 
individual Christian, but of church societies as organized 
institutions for work. This probably has been one of the 
powerful influences in the movement throughout, in utilizing 
and consolidating results, as w r ell as joining the emotional 
nature in the ardent enthusiasm required to commence the 
work. Murphy acted on this principle from the outset with 
great earnestness. But in appealing to church influence and 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPER A1STCE. 121 



assistance, oar orator was careful to avoid any appeal to sec- 
tarian bitterness and prejudice. In many cases attempts 
were made by powerful denominational influences to get such 
an influence on the Murphy movement in certain places, as to 
control it and make its results redound to the glory and gain 
of particular societies. 

All such attempts the subject of our sketch assiduously dis- 
countenanced, for he knew what seeds of rankling discord and 
discontent could thus be sown. All his tact and good man- 
agement were sometimes necessary to prevent evil consequen- 
ces from ensuing, and he won, thus early in his career, the 
admiration and love of those who watched him, as much by his 
skill in riding over these obstacles, as by his fervid eloquence 
and force as a platform orator. Mr. Murphy's views on this 
subject are very well expressed in an extemporaneous speech 
he made some time after from the balcony of a hotel at At- 
lantic City. Though in chronological order this address anti- 
cipates time, it is so pat to the matter under discussion that we 
are impelled to give it. It is such a good specimen of his 
average style of effort too, that it is presented in full. On 
this occasion the great apostle of temperance reform said : 

" My Friends :— I thank you for this generous reception 
in this beautiful city by the sea. I have a heart that feels 
and a memory that never forgets. A good deed brings its 
timely reward, and there is a satisfaction in performing good, 
deeds to those who most need them. There are thousands 
throughout the land who need good deeds — who need to be 
lifted up from where they have fallen through their liking for 
strong drink. Let us throw our temperance banner to the 
breeze. Let temperance and charity be our watchwords. I 
am glad that I am here to-night to speak to you on this impor- 
tant subject, for I feel that each and all of you can do some- 
thing toward reclaiming those who need wise counsel and gen- 
uine love to dissuade them from their folly. Let us seek the 
truth. It is precious — more precious than the wealth of the 
world. When we find it, let us disseminate it. Let us show 



122 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the poor, unfortunate man who is being dragged down into 
the sloughs of poverty and disgrace, through a diseased appe- 
tite, what will be the result of his folly. Speak kindly to 
him and try hard to save him. 

" We, in our humble places, can make the world better for 
having lived in it. The beautiful ocean which looms up before 
us thrills us with its beauty and grandeur. It touches the 
divinity within us — that divinity which teaches us to be purer, 
better, and more truthful. In all nature we find lessons of 
portentous import. In all things God's handiwork and His 
loving kindness are to be seen. This world is not so bad as we 
would make it, for it is a good world, and I would like to stay 
in it a great while. 

" We are here to talk about a subject old and threadbare — 
at least, some people say so ; but there is still something to 
say against rum-drinking. I am glad to say that the man who 
resolves to break away from the terrible curse of drinking has 
made great progress. This is a world that is a schoolhouse. 
Temptation is on the right .hand and on the left hand. The 
man is not to be thanked for not falling when there is no 
temptation ; but the man who resists temptation is entitled to 
commendation. 

" The principle for us to teach is that men shall consecrate 
themselves to an honorable life. Legislation can never make 
people temperate or bring them into the kingdom of God. It 
is only the grace of God which can divert men from their evil 
course. 

" It is not necessary for men to become sectarian in their 
views to be God-like men — temperate men ; but it is necessary 
that men should seek God's mercy to strengthen them in their 
righteous resolutions. How are we to be saved, is the great 
question of to-day. 

" Men want to be cured and saved. When men have be- 
come reckless and dissipated, how are they to be saved ? By 
kindness, and kindness only. The kind touch of the Christian 
hand is sweet with the fragrance of heaven. I know what 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEEANCE. 123 

kindness is, for I've tasted of the bitter dregs in the cup of 
dire poverty. 

"Kindness i.3 never forgotten by the true heart. I know 
what it is. I have had it extended to me. The princi- 
ples of Christ as preached on the Mount should be carried out 
by every one. 

" The reclaiming power of love is great ; aye, it is power- 
ful ; yes, it is most potent. I know this, for I have seen the 
most degraded taken from the very gutter. It pays to be 
kind ; it pays to be merciful. Speak the kind word ; perform 
the kind act. It may be your passport to eternal bliss. Away 
out in the far-away State of Iowa, I met a man who had fallen 
low, yea, to the very depths of dire degradation, through 
drinking from the accursed cup. He came to one of my meet- 
ings. He signed the pledge, and abandoned the fiend that 
dragged him down. The family that he had disgraced was 
made happy, and, what is more, he kept the pledge, and ob- 
tained fifty thousand signatures to it. 

"The Church of God is like the hospital for those who are 
sick. The ministers are the physicians. We must feed the 
starving. We can't stop to ask what has made them hungry. 
God's love is great. He does not forsake the lowly. Why 
should we ? God is in the man, and God is in the woman. 

"Don't become discouraged in working among the lowly. 
They are a part of God's people. They shall be washed purer 
than snow, and be brought back unto the fold of Christ. 

" Beware of the wine-cup. It is a snare and it is a delusion, 
Six years ago I was not known, except for my dissipation. 
Then I could not control myself ; but now I know that I am 
redeemed from the accursed cup. Drinking men should make 
an effort to help themselves, and others will aid them in their 
noble effort. 

"Let us be the master and not the servant of King Alcohol. 
A glorious victory awaits us, and God shall give us a blessed 
deliverance." 

Prior to his great revival season at Pittsburgh, which lifted 



124 THE TEUE PATH ; 

his name from merely local celebrity to a fame as wide as the 
continent, Mr. Murphy had already carefully organized his 
plan of work and studied the various agencies necessary .to 
carry on the arduous campaign against a foe so powerfully 
intrenched and fortified in the habits and passions of men. His 
experience had revealed to him all the insidious appeals which 
the love of alcohol makes to the frailty of humanity. To win 
back the lost, besotted in their own evil appetites, with their 
consciences glozed over by all the specious arguments prompted 
by perverse desires and wishes, and bodily functions diseased 
by the terrible love for the most dangerous of poisons, it was 
necessary to use every resource known to the wisdom of the 
student of human nature, as well as the magnetic eloquence of 
the temperance orator. First, the religious element must be 
utilized, teaching men that they must trust to a higher power 
than their own hasty repentance, and calling in the sympathy 
and encouragement of the Christian brethren. Secondly, the 
powerful influence of woman, so effective for good and evil, 
which has played so important a- part in all the social and 
moral revolutions of the world. 

Thirdly, Murphy .early saw that to reform the drunkard per- 
manently, he must arouse his sense of self-respect, so long 
drugged and deadened. The converted sot must be made to 
feel that he is a man among men once more, with the ability 
to be useful to others, and to be recognized as one of the 
world's workers. 

To accomplish this as far as possible, Mr. Murphy borrowed 
a feature from the Methodist discipline, the class meeting ; or 
to speak more accurately, he engrafted on the conduct of the 
temperance movement the systematic narration of experiences 
on the part of those who had signed the pledge of total absti- 
nence. Aside from the versatility of interest given by this 
peculiar method of conducting his public meetings, the con- 
1 agion of example proved to be catching and inspiring in an 
astonishing degree. The friends of the reformed watched these 
exhibitions of the birth of a new spirit with breathless inter- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 125 

est ; and immense throngs were drawn who might not have 
been alone attracted by the eloquent appeals of the leader of 
the movement himself. The enthusiasm poured into the veins 
of society by this novel agency may be easily imagined, and 
the acute observer may very well attribute to this course a 
large share of the extraordinary success of the Murphy meet- 
ings from the very commencement of his phenomenal career as 
an agitator of temperance reform. 

The influence exerted over men themselves by this interest- 
ing and striking method, is described by eye-witnesses as 
something thrilling and marvellous. Some poor wretch, just 
awakened perhaps to a full sense of his miserable condition, 
the light dimly struggling through his clouded brain and 
conscience, would hear a familiar voice on the platform. Rais- 
ing his eyes he would see the well-known face of the com- 
panion of many a foul debauch standing before the vast 
audience, telling with broken voice and simple but touching 
words the story of his fall, his degradation, and of his new 
birth ; the audience trembling with sympathetic attention ; 
the speaker himself lifted into manhood and self-respect in the 
thought that he had come back like the prodigal son, and was 
welcome into the fold of manly usefulness, dignity, and 
equality. 

Fancy the thrill that would tingle through every nerve and 
vein of the listener ! He himself, too, might set the seal of 
public confession on the sincerity of his repentance and 
thereby induce others to reform ! His tremors, his hopes, his 
aspirations for a new life soon seen by some one of the many 
watchful and attentive laborers in the cause, anxiously watch- 
ing for the blessed signs. In a moment all the sluggish in- 
stincts of good, which had become almost dead, would leap 
into full-born activity, and another convert to manhood and 
respectability have taken his first step in a new life. Many of 
the scenes enacted at the Murphy meetings throughout the 
land have been startlingly dramatic and striking, and we can- 
not wonder that the great wave of reform should have rolled 



126 THE TRUE PATH ; 

with such tremendous sweep throughout different parts of the 
nation. 

Before entering on any detailed account of the leading re- 
vivals which have marked the Murphy movement, let us get 
at some clear conception of the man and his methods as actually 
at work. The personal appearance and oratorical manner of 
the temperance reformer have already been sketched. A man 
of massive frame and will, his whole soul is in the great work. 
He evidently feels himself a king annointed directly by the 
Divine purpose, and he impresses this on the people who hear 
him. Let us sketch such a scene as has occurred, with trifling 
modifications, a thousand times. 

A great audience is assembled waiting for the arrival of the 
man who is the centre figure of all the great interest, which 
lies pent up in the throng. Eyes are frequently turned to the 
door, that they may catch the first glimpse of him. Vagrants 
and tatterdemalions, the offscourings of the gutter and the 
rum-shop make up a large part of the waiting people. Their 
imbruted hearts have been pierced with a ray of keen and 
poignant emotion ; for they have, somehow, an idea that this 
night may be the turning point of a wretched existence. Sud- 
denly a thrill runs through them. A little stir at the door, and 
somehow the knowledge passes from heart to heart that Mur- 
phy has come. The audience arise to their feet as a single 
man. As the broad form of the orator buffets his way through 
the eager crowds, it is like a swimmer cleavkig the waves, 
for they press eagerly around him, closing up in front and 
rear, every hand extended to clasp his. 

Women with streaming eyes bless him, for their hearts are 
full of gratitude to the man who they believe likely to be the 
savior of their husbands, their fathers, their sons. Stalwart 
and bearded men shake with emotion, for they have found in 
him a strong pillar of hope and encouragement, an influence 
mighty to save from the fiendish curse of rum. Murphy's 
strong, massive features, wavering between a smile and a tear, 
for he has the strong Irish sense of humor, and he is both 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 127 

touched and amused by the feeling he excites, respond to all 
the emotions. At last he pushes his way through the human 
billows, that choke his way to the platform. 

A short, pungent, telling speech follows. Every word preg- 
nant with meaning, and hitting the bull's eye like a rifle bullet. 
His language has no graces of rhetoric, no ornaments of fine 
phrase; but it is terribly earnest and direct, the burning utter- 
ance of a heart which looks on its burden as of paramount- 
importance to humanity. There is no thought to tickle the 
fancy or please a fine esthetic taste, but the picture on the 
platform is that of a great strong soul wrestling with some 
enemy. The impassioned orator quivers with the intensity of 
his feeling, great beads of sweat roll from his face, as he stalks 
up and down the platform, which seems to be too narrow for 
his standing room, and he strikes the table with resounding 
blows from time to time, as if he were smiting some invisible 
but yet terrible foe. An experienced and clever critic in 
speaking of the Irish temperance orator, says of him : 

" His remarks make it apparent that his forte lies rather in 
addressing drunkards, and holding meetings for their conver- 
sion, than in lecturing to large audiences of temperance people. 
The story of his life as related, to be sure, is of interest, but 
his pleadings and exhortations are of little force in such in- 
stances. He is, indeed, a man like Moody, and other lay 
preachers, big with the sense of his mission, possessing a pow- 
erful constitution, much magnetism, great hopefulness, and 
an indomitable will. These, combined with his Irish versatility 
and ready wit, make up the man. Beside he is a fervent 
Methodist and an incessant hand-shaker." 

As Murphy goes on in his address, signs of irrepressible fervor 
and sympathy break out in the audience. Exclamations break 
out similar to those heard at revival and camp-meetings, and 
the people sway at every turn to each thought and feeling of 
the speaker. When he closes his short and telling speech (for 
all his speeches are short), some singer, appointed for the 
purpose, leach the audience in a hymn or temperance song, 



128 THE TRUE PATH ; 

which pours forth with passionate melody as if a necessary 
relief for the emotions evoked by Murphy's address. The ex- 
ercises which follow are best described in Murphy's own 
language, as, for example, in his conversation with a newspaper 
reporter at a camp-meeting at Chataqua, N. Y. 

Reporter,—" Do you . propose to continue your work on 
the same plan as it has begun ?" 

Mr. Murphy. — " Exactly so. It has, under God, been a 
great success, and I am confident that it may yet be made 
more so." 

Reporter. — "But you can't go everywhere and preach 
this gospel of reform. How do you expect to have it .spread ?" 

Mr. Murphy. — " I am enlisting young men everywhere I 
can find them of the right kind. When a man signs the pledge 
and makes up his mind to try, under Go'd, to keep it, I imme- 
diately make him talk about it, and about the second or third 
time he speaks ' I announce him for the principal man at a 
meeting. I tell him to tell the people how his wife and his 
children and himself suffered, and how he spent all his money 
on Saturday night before he came home, and then told his 
poor discouraged wife, when he arrived home late at night, 
that he had been delayed and the firm for which he 
worked could not pay him, and thus he got in debt and his 
wife got worse and more discouraged and everything was 
wrong. When it is announced that this man will speak, his 
old associates, with a peculiar turn of the large tobacco quid 
in their mouths and a wink of the besotted eye, say to each 
other, c Bill is going to make a temperance lecture to-night ; 
let's go.' And they do go, and they arrange themselves right 
in front of the stand to scare him, you see." 

Reporter. — " Don't these men thus put' forward break 
down in their speeches ?" 

Mr. Murphy. — "Not often. A man can tell the simple 
story of his follies, as I have told you ; and when he rises to 
do so, and is introduced by some kind words, he makes a great 
effort, and as he goes on with the relation of one foolish and 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 129 

simple act after another, his friends hunch each other and say, 
1 That's so, Tom ; that's just the way we all on us do. Bill 
knows just how it is. He is happy now. Did you hear 5 im 
say as how happy his wife is, and he says his children run to 
meet him, now he's sober, when he comes home. Let's us try 
it, and see if our wives and children will do as his do.' In 
this way, don't you see, the work of these men is very effect- 
ive." 

Reporter. — "You intend that these men shall do the work, 
then ?" 

Mr. Murphy. — " A large part of it. I shall do all I can so 
long as God lets me live. But the great work I expect to 
have done by an army of workers, who shall go over the coun- 
try from Maine to California (I started in Maine), and preach 
the gospel to the lost/ I have had invitations to go to New 
York, Chicago, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Boston, and many other 
large cities of the country. I have not decided where I shall 
go yet, and don't want to decide. I am not at all desirous of 
making announcements beforehand. The preparations then 
are too elaborate, and I don't like to work by other men's 
plans. They are too grand, and consist in too much announc- 
ing." 

Reporter. — " How long have you been speaking upon the 
subject of temperance ?" 

Mr. Murphy. — " In my weak way ever since I was made a 
free man in 1870. I then began in a very feeble, stammering 
way to pray and to speak. At first I would get way up in the 
corner, where I thought as few as possible would see me, and 
I talked as low as possible ; but I grew in grace, God helping 
me." 

As we have before stated, though Murphy's labors were 
highly successful during the earlier part of his career, it was 
not till he came to Pittsburgh in the fall and winter of 1876 
-77, that he became a mighty name and recognized power 
throughout America. The movement there inaugurated was 
so grand as to trumpet forth the man's fame from sea to sea. 



130 THE TKUE PATH ; 

Pittsburgh, the Birmingham or Sheffield of America, the 
great city of the workers of steel and iron, was a peculiarly 
available city for his efforts. Nowhere in the country was 
drunkenness more rife, and the devil of drink so potent a mon- 
arch over the hearts of men. The large number of artisans 
and mechanics collected, embracing many foreigners of differ- 
ent nationalities, gave a peculiar social element to the city 
dangerous in the extreme, as the material for that conflagra- 
tion of the passions and appetites involved in rum-drinking. 
Above the city floats an eternal gray pall, the smoke of in- 
numerable furnaces and factories, and the clang of steam and 
trip hammers reverberates incessantly on the air like a mighty 
roll of drums. The dominion of the rum-seller was like an 
iron chain, and perhaps Pittsburgh, and its neighbor, Alleg- 
hany, might be selected as in many respects typical cities for 
the Murphv work. The time came and the work commenced. 
The business of the manufacturers was very much depressed 
on account of the hard times, and thousands and thousands of 
hands had been thrown out of work or were laboring on half- 
time. The large amount of leisure, and the discouragement 
consequent on lack of employment, operated with unusual 'force 
to fill the shops of the dealers in liquid death, with customers 
anxious to drown their troubles, or to while away the long 
dreary hours. The opportunity for a grand work was there 
So the hour and the man also came, and a whole continent 
clashed with the echoes of the tremendous results, that were 
forged out by the magnetic ardor and powerful will of a strong 
leader, aided, to be sure, by eager assistants, but still wrought 
in the main by the indomitable force and novel methods, act- 
ing on raw material, eminently fit and ready for the ex- 
periment. 

The father of this great Pittsburgh reform movement is 
George Woods, LL. D., the Chancellor of the Western Uni- 
versity. This gentleman is studious and scholarly. His life 
path runs in an entirely different direction from that of vice 
and wickedness, and yet, he has stepped aside, and strives to 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 131 

save those unfortunate beings lost to honor and purity. He 
was born in Yarmouth, Maine ; comes from a noble State 
that has done more than any of the States in the cause of in- 
temperance. It may be here remarked, that the foundations 
of the great and noble principles that have captured Pitts- 
burgh, and have caused nearly all public emotions to beat in 
unison with them, were first laid in that dear old New Eng- 
land State ; and that to her we are indebted for untold good 
and blessings. George Woods is the possessor of a great heart 
- — a heart that goes out to the sufferers unrestrainedly. He is 
very sympathetic, and his love for humanity of no slight 
magnitude — a love that lives, and grows, despite non-success 
and disheartening results. He worked for years to establish 
some institution in Pittsburgh of the nature of a reform. He 
was greeted with very little sympathy ; he had scarcely any 
success. Pew persons seemed to care whether the drunkards 
were rescued or not. It was a vast deal of trouble, mentally 
and physically, to go forward, and try to reclaim these 
wretches that were black blots on the community. Even 
the laity had the appearance of indifference, and no one 
seemed disposed to exert himself practically in the cause. 
Intemperance was so black and low, that many, being happily 
situated where it only come occasionally, like an ungentle 
wind, were not ready, or willing, to meet it face to face, with 
the purpose of killing it. It was a kind of contamination to 
approach it thus closely. These people were not hard, and 
cold, and unsympathetic ; once aroused, they would not hold 
aloof from the drunkard. They were simply indifferent. 
This was the Chancellor's estimation of the Pittsburgh people. 
Future developments have proven him correct in his conelu 
sion. He, having failed to awaken the interest and sympathy 
of one class, addressed himself to another. Here he met en- 
couragement, and the initial of the movement that is now 
known throughout this country, and recognized by the fair 
Lands across the foaming deep. It will be interesting to give 



132 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the first minutes of the proceedings of the society. They are 
as follows : 

"On the evening of IMday, March 2, 1876, a number of 
persons assembled by arrangement in the Chancellor's room, 
at the Western University, to consider the advisability of es- 
tablishing a temperance organization. After some informal 
remarks, the meeting was called to order. Addresses of 
gome length were made by Chancellor Woods and the Rev. 
Joseph Travelli, who detailed their experiences in this direc- 
tion in other parts of the country. At nine o'clock the meet- 
ing adjourned, to assemble in the same place on Tuesday, 
March 7, 1876." This was the first step taken towards the 
movement from which such infinite good has sprung, and 
which is now so well known. At the second meeting, they 
came to this agreement : " We form ourselves into an asso- 
ciation, with the purpose of abstaining entirely from the use 
of all intoxicating liquors, including beer and ale ; and of 
inducing, by kindness, sympathy and love, all others, wholly 
to abstain from their use." 

At the third meeting the following constitution and by-laws 
were adopted : 

Preamble. 

In view of the great evils in every form of intemperance, to 
individuals, families, communities, and our nation, especially 
of the exposure of our young men to shame, suffering and 
ruin, we hereby form ourselves into an association, to be gov- 
erned by the following constitution : 

Article 1. This association shall be called "The Young 
Men's Temperance Union." 

Article 2. The object shall be by its members abstaining 
entirely from the use of all alcholic liquors, including beer 
and ale, and by their kind and sympathizing influence over 
each other, and by their efforts for others to bring them into 
the association ; to save the young from the dangers to which 
they are exposed, and to rescue those who have already be* 
come t ictims to this prolific source of vice and crime. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 133 



Article 3. It proposes to accomplish this object by frequent 
meetings for discussion, by addresses and social intercourse, 
and when its members and means will allow, by securing 
pleasant rooms, where its members can meet at any hour of the 
day or evening, and where newspapers, books, and light re- 
freshments of the best quality, at the bare cost, can be had, 
to which others can be invited. 

Article 4. Its officers shall be a president, five vice-presi- 
dents, secretary, treasurer, and executive committee, consist- 
ing of five, whose duties shall be such as usually belongs to 
such officers. 

Article 5. Any person may become a member of this asso- 
ciation by signing this constitution and expressing his pur- 
pose to conform to article 2. 

Article 6. Alterations and amendments may be made to this 
constitution by a vote of two-thirds of the members present 
at a regular meeting, notice having been given of the pro- 
posed alterations and amendments at a regular preceding 
meeting. 

Amendments. 

1. The president, vice-presidents, secretary, treasurer, and 
executive committee, shall be elected on the first Tuesday 
evening of April, 1877, and annually thereafter. The execu- 
tive committee shall have power to fill any vacancy occasioned 
by death or other cause, among the officers or executive com- 
mittee. 

By-Laws. 

1. It shall be the duty of each member to attend all meet- 
ings, so far as his time and circumstances will permit, and to 
exert his influences for the good of the members and others, 
w T ho may be addicted to the use of intoxicating liquors. 

2. Wherever any member shall fail to keep his purpose, it 
shall be the duty of the other members to use all kind and 
persuasive influences to restore and save him, in conformity to 
the scriptural injunction to be a compassionate to those who 
are out of the way. 35 



134 THE TRUE PATH ; 

3. Alterations and amendments may be made to the by-law&> 
by a vote of two-thirds of the members present at a regular 
meeting, notice having been given of the proposed alterations 
or amendments at a regular preceding meeting. 

From this time the beloved project that had been in the 
Chancellor's head for so long a time assumed the aspect of a 
certainty. 

From this movement sprang our present great temperance 
cause. This association confined itself to one principle and 
one purpose. The people in it were Christians ; but Chancel- 
lor Woods' plain and practical sense managed to keep them 
clear of all elements outside of the aforesaid principle and 
purpose. It has been well said by a noted authority that " the 
key-note to the grand success of the Young Men's Temperance 
Union is ■ Good will toward all, but devotion to no particular 
one.'" 

" In reference," says an early minute of the society, " to 
the subject of opening and closing the meetings with prayer, 
which was then brought up, it was decided that it should be 
left to the discretion of the presiding officer." 

Dr. Woods made a motion, " that any one who may have 
violated his pledge, or knew of another having done so, 
should make it known, if so disposed." This was adopted ; 
and there was no such thing in the organization as a black 
sheep, or an excommunication. Those that signed the pledge, 
and fell, were not expelled from the association, but helped to 
regain his footing in the path of right. They were taken in 
again, and allowed all the privileges of full membership. 

On the 24th day of October, at the meeting, a letter was 
read " from Mr. Murphy, a celebrated temperance lecturer." 
The president, Mr. W. C. Moreland, was requested to secure 
the valuable services of Marshal Swartzwalder, but failed in 
doing so. Here we have the first glimpse at Francis Murphy 
and Marshal Swartzwalder, giants in the fight against intem- 
perance. The last minute of the society was the record of the 
meeting of November 21st, and was as follows : "It was voted 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 135 

that the thanks of the association be tendered to Dr. Woods 
for his promptness in writing to Mr. Murphy, and also that 
the association fully endorses the action taken by the Chancel- 
lor for securing Mr. Murphy's services." It was also voted 
that " a committee, consisting of Dr. Woods, and Messrs. Mc- 
Masters and Arnold, be appointed to arrange with Mr. Mur- 
phy, and settle all the business necessary for holding the 
lectures, including the securing of a room or church." 

These are the last words recorded ; for the work that 
crowded the following week left no time in w r hich to note 
the manifold events of one of the grandest movements known 
to man ; for this temperance wave deserves the highest 
praise, it being the blessed means of bringing back fallen man 
to his pristine glory. Mr. Murphy's engagement was origin- 
ally for eight lectures, at twenty-five dollars a lecture. When, 
however, the interest and attention of the whole community 
was directed to this cause, he was retained for an indefinite 
period, the price of his services and expenses being put at a 
salary of $125 a week. When the movement was started, 
about eighty dollars lay in the treasury of the union ; and the 
lecturer was engaged while it was in that low state. 

The receipts of the Sunday evening lectures in Library Hali 
amounted to about $3,000 ; and this defrayed the expenses of 
the crusade. The expenses were the salaries to Mr. Murphy, 
Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln, as organist and vocal soloists ; rent of 
halls, services of janitors, etc., etc., besides the money loaned 
the poor men, who had reformed, and were destitute. Mr. 
Murphy's first lecture was delivered in the Opera House, and 
the others delivered in different churches. 

He was not successful at the outset. Some men, known in 
the smoky city as " rough and tough " specimens of manhood, 
found their way up to the famous lecturer's feet and signed 
his proffered pledge. This pledge, which is known from one 
point to another of this vast country, is as follows : 



136 " THE TRUE PATH ; 



YOUNG MEN'S TEMPERANCE UNION. 



WITH MALICE TOWARDS NONE AND CHARITY FOR 

ALL. 



I, the undersigned, do pledge my word and 
honor, God helping me, to abstain from all Intox- 
icating Liquors as a beverage, and that I will, by- 
all honorable means, encourage others to abstain. 

Francis Murphy 



Among the first signers were Edward Timmony, George 
Hall, David Hall, John Irving, Colonel Hetherington, S. T. 
Paisley, Frank X. Burns and Captain Barbour. 

The first signers were chiefly young men, known as " hard 
drinkers." The reader can imagine the ridicule flung at 
them by the community. They were the target for all the 
ill-humored things one man can say of another. But they were 
brave and unflinching. They held their post nobly. And 
after awhile hundreds, nay thousands rallied around them, 
and hoisted the banner of temperance gladly, eagerly. Mr. 
Murphy made a novel, and most interesting departure in the 
lecture field — he made his converts address the crowds that 
rushed to his meetings. The moment a man was enrolled in 
the lists of temperance he was put into active service. And 
they did great good, working in the cause like Trojans, and 
making oftesr brilliant and telling speeches in their warm 
enthusiasm. 

Curiosity drew a vast number of people to Mr. Murphy's 
meetings ; and, after hearing him, these people returned to 
their homes filled with hope and faith, and praise of God. 
This movement was to reform inebriates, hardly to entertain 
those sure of their position, and not given to the indulgence 
of intoxicants. To all in need of sympathy, encouragement 
and hope, this movement opened wide its arms, and especially 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 137 

solicitous was it to those poor, unfortunate beings down in the 
low, degrading depths of sin and dishonor. 

It was open, frank, and conscientious in every particular ; 
and not the lightest shadow of sectarianism fell upon it. No 
attempts were made to bully those engaged in the sale of the 
poison ; no mask hid the face of this angel of mercy. The 
movement stood out from the beginning in its true color, fair 
and truthful from first to last. It was indeed the perfect 
embodiment of those noble words : " With Malice toward 
ngne, and Charity for all !" It is no wonder that the whole 
populace were attracted, captured, and carried away with 
delight at this beacon-light of so much hope and promise, 
both of joy and peace of to-day, and of the vague, uncertain 
to-morrow, that stretches before men's dim sight like some 
vast, unknown land enveloped in dark and grim shadows. 

The Rev. Mr. Murray's Fifth Avenve M. E. Church was 
secured, and from this edifice thundered forth the glowing 
words of salvation, through temperance, to hundreds upon 
hundreds of eager listeners, sitting under the spell of that 
powerful and beloved voice. 

This old edifice has become dearer than mere words can 
express, to the community of the smoky city. It has been 
christened the " Old Home ;" and it well deserves that loving 
appellation. Many a weary soul has found comfort within 
those walls ; and there many a lonely and suffering soul has 
been brought from out of the shade into the sunlight. The 
basement of the church was used for charitable purposes ; and 
was the scene of many goodly sights. Mr. Murray, the 
pastor, worked zealously in the cause, giving his valuable 
services whenever there was any need of them, and going 
about doing all he could to forward temperance. The esteem 
in which he is wrapped, and the love the people have for him 
is indeed great ; and the Fifth Avenue M. E. Church is re- 
garded affectionately by thousands. 

Five thousand persons signed the pledge in the fourth week 
of the movement ; and ten weeks afterwards, it reached the 



1£8 THE TRUE PATH ; 

high figure of forty thousand. These figures show how the 
community of Pittsburgh felt, and in what light it regarded 
the cause. 

The maner in which the meetings were conducted is pecul- 
iarly original and interesting. Some reverend gentleman 
present would generally open with prayer. At the outset 
it was somewhat difficult for Mr. Murphy to find a divine in 
the audience. Looking around the audience, he would say : 
" If there's any minister of the gospel present, I wish he'd 
come up here, and pray for us." This earnest appeal often 
went by unheeded; and he, himself, would be obliged to 
kneel down, and conduct the prayer instead. This state of 
affairs did not last a very long while, for soon the ministers 
gathered about him, and worked nobly and well with him in 
the great temperance wave. 

The regular business commences after the prayer. The 
singing of a volunteer choir, which is always on hand, is one 
of the most attractive of the meetings, and is heartily enjoyed, 
and participated in by the immense congregations that assem- 
ble to hear Francis Murphy speak. The vocal exercises con- 
sist of the dear old Bliss and Sankey tunes that we love so 
much— "Hold the Fort," "What Shall the Harvest Be?" 
" Let the Lower Lights be Burning," " The Sweet By-and-By," 
and " I Hear Thy Welcome Voice." The last mentioned song 
is Mr. Murphy's favorite ; and he always asks for it. There 
are some expressions of the temperance apostle which will live 
lovingly in all those who attended the meetings, and worked 
with him in the movement. Who can forget, who has once 
heard his wind up of "If you please," or "Won't some- 
body please say 'Amen?'" And how can one lose sight 
of his " Presbyterian," " Just a word, brothers," and his in- 
troductory of " Clothed in his right mind ?" 

We have already remarked that Mr. Murphy requests his con- 
verts to work. He brings them forward without any thought 
whatsoever of their ability to tell their story of reformation 
from drunkenness. His introductions always put the soeaker 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEEA1STCE. 139 

at ease and in excellent humor, and as a matter of course he 
speaks well. 

For instance, Mr. Murphy will generally say : " Brother 
George Magoffin will now tell us how good he feels. Brother 
George, tell the people how happy your wife and little ones 
are since you signed the pledge." And forthwith, a man of 
the people will tell the secret affairs of his family to an im- 
mense throng of listeners with an ease and power little short 
of the marvellous. Indeed the attention and sympathy of the 
vast audiences are with men of humble circumstances, and 
these men make often the most telling speeches at the Murphy 
meetings. 

We find such names prominent in the movement, gentlemen 
of social and commercial standing in Pittsburgh who signed 
the pledge, and delivered speeches at the various meetings, as 
the following : Hon. J. K. Moorhead, James Parks, Jr., Joseph 
Dilworth, Josiah Copely, Chancellor Woods, Rev. Travelli, 
Dr. Scovel, Marshal Swartzwalder, Colonel Richard Realf, 
William C. Moreland, S. T. Paisley, Gilbert McMasters, 
George Garber, George and David Hall, F. Johns, George 
Potter, John Patterson, William Hill, George Woods, Jr., 
William Weyman, Captain Shannon, Joseph Hunter, Colonel 
Hetherington, Edward Timmony, Chief of Police Ross, Frank 
Burns, Robert Pollock, Dr. Mundorff, Joseph Woodson, Dr. 
McClarren, Joe Cupples, Daniel Burk, Harry McGregor, Felix 
R. Brunot, Captain Barbqur, Thomas McCleilan, and many 
others. 

" The speeches," says a good authority, " are of every kind, 
from grave to humorous. Some touching pathetic recital of 
past struggles and sorrows, with the name of loved ones, of 
wife, mother or children, connected with it, elicits tears ; while 
following this may come some quaint reminiscences of services 
in the tanglefoot battalion, which causes a broad smile, which 
frequently deepens into a ripple of laughter, among the audi- 
ence. Applause is also frequent and unstinted. There is a 
sociability about the whole affair that is singular and attract- 



140 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ive. Chatting, so long as it does not interfere with the proceedi- 
ngs, is by no means considered indecorous, and rarely is there 
seen a sea of happier faces than fills the " Old Home." 

Incidents of interest occur almost every evening. "At the 
Smithfield Street M. E. Church," to quote again from the 
aforesaid authority, " worthy c old brimstone corner,' one 
evening, a young man stepped up and signed the pledge. 
Scarcely had he done so, when a young woman, with a babe 
in her arms, came forward, and falling upon his neck, kissed 
him and wept. Drink had separated the young couple, and 
as with pledge in pocket, and the baby on one arm, and his 
wife on the other, the husband walked through the crowd, and 
received the congratulations of everybody, it is safe to say 
that Pittsburgh held not a happier man." 

At one of the meetings the following scene excited consid- 
erable sympathy : 

A lonely, ragged wretch drew nigh. His very air seemed 
to say : See, no one cares for me. I am left to myself ! Why 
do I wish to be pure and good ? His conscience was awake, 
and w^ould not slumber. He takes the pen, and frees himself, 
by one stroke of it, from Satan. He turns to quit the place. 
He meets smiling faces, and eager extended hands. He is no 
longer alone, but with kind friends who will help to lead him 
along the only true way. 

On one occasion a gentleman of most pleasing aspect walked 
up to the table to redeem his honor and himself from the low 
depths into which he had fallen by a long course of intemper- 
ance. As he did so, a bright little youngster, in charge of a 
lady, clapped his hands gleefully together, and cried out, in 
ringing tones : " Oh, auntie, there's papa ! Look, he's going 
to put his name to the good paper. Let's hurry home, and 
tell dear mamma. She will be so glad !" 

Sometimes a son, whose feet have rambled from the path 
of rectitude, will, after signing, return to the author of his 
existence, and then, way off in some sheltered corner, mother 
and son, pressed to each other's breasts, will mingle their tears 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 141 

of love, hope, and happiness together, while the audience draws 
around them the respect of privacy. To see a person sign 
the pledge scatters away all doubts as to his sincerity, and 
earnestness of purpose. He does so with solemnity, and with 
an air that forbids the questioning of* his motive, or doubting 
it. Strong, brawny men go forward, and annex their names 
to the pledge, and return to their companions with moistened 
eyes, and seem to be changed. They have overcome their 
base appetite, have regained the pristine nobility God endowed 
them with ; they are men again. There is a tear in the eye 
unused to tears, and a quiver of lips that were set and stern. 
They have cut loose from sin ; they have saved themselves. 
"Many instances of what Mr. Murphy has been pleased to 
term weddings," says the authority from whom we have before 
quoted, " have taken place. Family ties that have been broken 
by the rude hand of dissipation have been mended, and es- 
trangements between husbands and wives brought to a happy 
conclusion." 

An incident occurred along in the fifth week of the move- 
ment, that, though not widely known, is full of interest. A 
young-man of good social position in Alleghany had long been 
paying his attentions to a very pretty and accomplished girl in 
Pittsburgh. They were engaged to be married, and undoubt- 
edly loved as only lovers know how. 

But he took to drink. She stood by him through thick and 
thin, and it was not until, while he was under the influence of 
liquor, he had offered her an insult beyond the power of her 
sex to condone, that she finally, at the importunate solicita- 
tions of friends, gave him up. She nearly died, but a sound 
constitution prevailed and placed her again in the possession 
of health, but loverless. He went to the dogs. Loss of posi- 
tion followed loss of love. For three years he squandered his 
patrimony, sacrificed his social position, and ultimately ended 
his race in the gutter ; a parody on what he had been, a cari- 
cature on what he should be. In tatterdemalion attire he one 
evening drifted into the Murphy meeting at the "Old Home," 



142 THE TRUE PATH ; 

and signed the pledge. Mr, Murphy seized on him as a sub* 
ject for testimony, but all that could be gotten out of him 
were a few, fierce, bitter words of hatred for the author of his 
ruin, and a few of earnest but cold determination. Then, with 
eyes on the floor and tightened lips, he turned, and in his rags 
and loneliness, wended his way from the crowd. During this 
scene there had sat in the gallery, near a gas jet, a young lady, 
in a seal-skin sacque. She expressed no visible emotion, or in- 
deed recognition, when the ragged man first made an appear- 
ance. But as he spoke his few brief remarks, in a low tone, 
the face of the fair one in the gallery became pallid, and her 
agitation was noticed by a number who little dreamed of its 
cause. As the new convert, after squeezing his way out of the 
church, was passing along Fifth street, a seal-skin sacque 
brushed against him, a soft little hand was laid on his arm, and 
a voice he knew but too well, spoke an endearing name of the 
" long ago. 5 ' That evening was the beginning of a new life, 
fraught with much promise and much happiness. 

But few weeks had elapsed before the interest of the Pitts- 
burgh public became intense, though the meetings had com- 
menced coldly. The fact, that some very prominent and 
noted men in local circles, men whose intemperate habits had 
seemed to be past reclamation, men whose social importance 
had been completely sunk and betrayed by the terrible appe- 
tites which had enslaved them, had, under the new wave of 
power which was sweeping over the city, risen again to the 
might of manhood and broken their fetters — this fact, we say, 
startled society to the core, and aroused even the indifferent 
into warmth. 

Among the distinguished lawyers of Western Pennsylvania, 
for many years has stood primus inter pares, a giant among 
his fellows, Marshal Swartzwalder, Esq. Superb in gifts, 
a powerful orator, a profoundly read and recondite stu- 
dent in all the learning of his profession, a thinker of exten- 
sive and rounded culture, this man had become a household 
name from the number of celebrated cases in which he had 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 143 

taken a part. One colossal vice, however, blasted his otherwise 
prosperous life. He was what is known as a periodical drunk- 
ard, a victim of dipsomania. These frequently recurring 
spasms transferred the elegant gentleman and honored citizen 
into a dirty vagabond, oscillating between the side-walk and 
the gutter, a ragged, mud-bespattered, senseless idiot, the pity 
and wonder of the city of which in his sober moments he was 
the pride and ornament. All efforts to reform him had 
proven futile, and those that loved him best, even, had given him 
up as a lost man. Family separation and estrangement had taken 
place, and all that was strong and noble in the man seemed 
debased by the fearful blight of alcohol. This noble and 
gifted man had sunk from one depth to another till there 
seemed no hope of rising. Imagine the shock of joy and 
amazement that thrilled his friends, when it was announced 
that he had yielded to the magnetic influence of Francis Mur- 
phy, and planted his feet firmly on the rock of total absti- 
nence. As a gentleman of prominence told the writer, the 
Murphy movement in Pittsburgh would have been a notable 
success, if the sole fruit of it had been the permanent reform- 
ation of Swartzwalder alone. The Irish reformer in a speech 
afterwards made at Columbus, Ohio, gave a graphic account of 
his attack on Mr. Swartzwalder, and the means he used to 
raise him from his wretchedness. Let him speak for himself: 
" Allow me to use an illustration that I may enforce this 
truth, and may God help me. I will speak of a man you 
have had in your midst, speaking for you — Marshal Swartz- 
walder. He was a victim of this habit for a number of 
years. He was a companion of my dear brother here on 
the platform, and who drank with my Brother Hall from 
week to week, and month to month, and year to year. He 
was a perfect gentleman when he was sober ; a kingly man, 
and has justly been called the patriarch of the Pittsburgh bar, 
and the Demosthenes of the profession. Perhaps no man who 
has been upon the platform, in the cause of human reform, has 
been equal to him. When I first came to the city of Pitts- 



144 THE TKUE PATH ; 

burgh, I was told about Marshal Swartzwalder, that he had 
been a drunkard a great many years — for thirty years at least 
— and they said there was no hope for him. I said I would 
like to see him. 'Well,' said they, 'you can see him/ but 
said he had been on a tremendous spree. I took particular 
pains to find out how I might be received ; they said I would 
be received kindly. I got the number of his office — for at this 
time he stayed in his office, and ate his meals there, and had a 
nice back room handsomely furnished where he slept — I came 
to his office and rapped at his door ; there was a young boy, a 
son of his, a beardless boy, about sixteen years of age, I should 
judge, that always staid with his father, and never left him ; 
he called him Dick. Dick came to the door — I wish you could 
have seen the poor boy ; he looked so depressed and sad. Said 
I, ' Is Mr. Swartzwalder in ?' He replied, c Yes ; do you wish 
to see him ?' I told him ' Yes, sir, 5 and sent in my card. He 
had asked what my name was, and I told him, and he stepped 
in and told him that Mr. Murphy was in the office and would 
like to see him. Said he, ' Send him in ; I would like to see 
him.' So I went to his room, and he rose from his large chair 
which he had for his own comfort. He was partially stripped, 
having his pantaloons tied around him with his suspenders. 
Being a chunky and quite heavy man, as he came towards me 
I was a little scared at the man, to tell the truth, as he walked 
up to me, looking so earnest, with a keen expression that 
seemed to look me through and through. As he approached 
he extended his hand and said, ' You are the man that has 
been talking temperance here ?' c Yes,' said I. ' Well,' said 
he, ' we never had much good from you temperance peo- 
ple : you come here and sing your songs, and present your 
bills and go away. That is the way they do, and I suppose 
you are like all the rest of them.' I said, ' I don't know how 
that is.' He said, ' Mr. Murphy, I want to talk to you.' ' I 
have been a victim of intemperance for more than thirty 
years,' said he. "I have no power to control myself.' He 
asked me to be seated ir a chair, and I sat down by his side. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPEEA1S T CE. 145 

Said he, looking strangely in my face, 'Is there any hope for 
me?' Said I, ' There is hope for you.' ' There is?' he ex- 
claimed. < Yes.' He asked, ' How so ?' Said I, ' With God's 
help you can be saved.' With a shake of his head he said, 
' Why, for more than twenty years I have been seeking for the 
truth, and have read the Bible through and through.' And 
he told me about the writings of several men he had read, 
seeking for the truth. 'And,' said he, 'Mr. Murphy, there is 
no help for me.' I commenced talking to him in my hum- 
ble way, the best I could. He turned around to Colonel 
Hetherington, and said : ' Go and tell Dick to come in.' 
The dear boy, when he came in, stepped up to his father's left 
side, and the father put his arms around the boy. The poor 
boy was so much overcome that he sat down and put his arms 
around his father's neck. The child could not control his 
feelings, and commenced to weep. The father said, ' Dear 
Dick, you never- left me.' Turning to me, he said : 'Mr. 
Murphy, here is a 'boy that stays with his father ; here is a 
boy that has walked the streets night after night for his 
father, and stays with him ; I wish I could tell you how good 
he has been, how much I love him.' Before we got through 
talking to each other, and reasoning with each other, Mr. 
Swartzwalder said : ' Mr. Murphy, I feel a very strange im- 
pression on my heart ; I feel as though God had touched me, 
so to speak.' I said to him, with all the power of encourage- 
ment that God had possessed me with, ' Mr. Swartzwalder, by 
the grace of God you shall conquer this evil ; I know it in my 
heart.' I left him ; I knew the work was done ; I knew it 
was a question of time when that man should come out re- 
deemed. Brother David Hall, who is on the platform, carried 
him provision, and nursed him, and there is not a better 
hearted man walks on this green earth of God's, than this 
same Brother Hall. He stayed with him and helped him for 
several days ; after six days the Christian people began to 
pray for him ; the people would come to me and ask, ' Mr. 
Murphy, do you believe Mr. Swartzwalder will be saved ?' 



146 THE TRUE PATH ; 

i Do I believe it ? Why,' said I, c God saves to the uttermost, 
and he knows no hard cases.' I gave them all the encourage- 
ment I could. The Christian men and women prayed for that 
man, for the people of Pittsburgh loved him ; they are proud 
of him as a grand pleader at the bar ; the grand counsellor of 
the State, with whom the judges of the supreme bench con- 
sult. In about six days — we had heard from him from day to 
day — and after some six days this man, majestic in his appear- 
ance, with his white flowing locks, w^ell dressed, and with a 
nice silk hat shining like a piece of polished gold, and his cane 
in his hand, came to the meeting ; there was a grandeur and 
majesty about the man ; he seemed to have come to himself 
again, with all the grandeur and kingly nobility he formerly 
possessed. As he came in, he stood and looked over the mul- 
titude of people in the room. When the man came in, and 
stood there, a whisper passed throughout the congregation, 
and I noticed that men that hadn't been seen to drop tears 
since the meeting commenced were now moved. I could see 
their lips begin to tremble, and after a while, I could see them 
get out their handkerchiefs. I wondered what was the cause 
of all this, but it was the hold the man had upon the people. 
By-and-by he walked up the aisle, pressing his way among 
the multitude of people, and as they parted to let him in, and 
he passed along, you could hear the people say, c God bless 
the man.' And when he came toward the table where the 
pledges were, the interest was intense. In the back part of 
the room they commenced standing up, to see if he would sign 
the pledge, and in a little while, as he stood there silently 
meditating, he turned, and seizing a pen, wrote his name upon 
the pledge of total abstinence. Then, turning to the congre- 
gation again, he said — what he had never before said in all his 
life — ' I want you to pray for me. This is for my life ; this is 
the last effort ; if I fail now, I shall never try it again,' That 
man went to his office, and asked God to help him. 

"I met him when I came to Pittsburgh, and had the pleasure 
of putting my arms around him. Said I, ' How are you get- 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 147 

ting along, Brother Swartzwalder ?" and he said, ' Brother 
Murphy, every morning I pray ; every day at noon I pray ; 
and every night I pray; and every day when I go past a 
saloon I begin to pray for God's power to keep rne and sustain 
me.' 

" This man has been kept by the grace of God, and has 
been the means in the hands of God of securing — I don't know 
but twenty thousand signers to the pledge of total abstinence, 
and is standing up to-day in all the dignity and freedom of 
this new-born life, saved from the power and dominion of rum. 
It pays to be kind, it pays to be merciful and to work in this 
blessed cause." 

Iii the same speech, from which we quote, Mr. Murphy gave a 
brief sketch of the conversion of the Hall brothers, who after- 
wards became such powerful co-laborers in the good work, 
that is worthy of citation : 

" Now, my dear friends, I see that the time is advancing 
when I must close my discourse. If I had time I would like to 
bring before you another illustration of this truth. Just a word 
about my brothers David Hall and George, and while they are 
on the platform tifey will excuse me for speaking about them. 
When I first came to Pittsburgh and spoke in the Opera 
House, brother David was there, George was not present. 
The next day, passing down the street, I met brother David 
near the Seventh Avenue Hotel, on the sidewalk. He stepped 
up, and taking me by the hand, said, 'How are you ?' And I 
said, ' Very well ; how are you ?' and he said, ' You don't 
know me?' I said 'No. 5 Said he, 'I heard you talk last 
night; I want you to understand that.' Said I, 'Did you?' 
and he replied, ' I was right there.' ' Were you ?' ■ Yes,' said 
he; 'and you told my story exactly.' Well, I was wonder- 
fully pleased with the expression of his face. ' And now,' re- 
marked he, ' there was something left out of the story ; you 
didn r fc tel 1 all.' Said I to David : ' I want you to tell me what 
it is.' Said he, 'I want you to tell me whether your wife is 
living V I told him she was not living. Do you know that 



148 THE TEUE PATH ; 

this man bowed his head on the street there and cried. * I 
want to say to you now/ said brother David, 'I will sign this 
pledge with you, and if you let me go down to the hotel 
with you I will sign it right there.' And he took another 
man with him, John Irving. He said he would go along and 
sign it too. We went to my room and he said : ' I have a 
saloon ; I want you to understand that.' Said I, c Hav.e you?' 
c Yes,' replied he. I inquired, ' What are you going to with 
it ?' c I am going to shut it up,' he replied. * Will you ?' said 
I. ' If you will shut it up, brother David, it will be a blessed 
thing.' I asked him where his place was, and said I would go 
down and see it. c You have got to come down quick if you 
get into it,' said he, ' for I am going to close it up, and I will 
never sell another drink of liquor.' When we came in the 
room he asked for the pledge and sat down and signed it — he 
and his companion, John Irving — as noble a man as ever God 
made, but who had fallen through the power of this evil. 
When they signed it they stepped up to each other and took 
each other's hand, but didn't speak a word. They turned 
their heads away from each other for a little while, then let 
go, and David went to one side of the room and John to the 
other. I knew that God had touched their hearts, and I want 
to say to you that it is these men that have made this move- 
ment and not Frank Murphy. These are the men who have 
done the work, and called it the Murphy movement. It ought 
to be called the Hall movement." 

Nobly indeed did these men work, and the appeals of 
Swartzwalder, and the two Halls, night after night, were fea- 
tures of hardly less importance in the success of the Murphy 
meetings than those of the temperance reformer himself. The 
sincerity and enthusiasm which lay at the bottom of it all is 
*best indicated in the fact that such men as these Ave have men- 
tioned, and many others, did not lose their grip after the sub- 
sidence of the first great excitement. They have been laboring 
assiduously ever since in the good work, not only in Pittsburgh, 
but in all the neighboring towns and counties, organizing 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 149 

Murphy associat ons and meetings, and bringing vast numbers 
into the fold of temperance again. This peculiar significance, 
found in the steady continuance of the Murphy work, after the 
departure of the man himself, shows what a vital tap-root it 
has, and how false the sneering charges sometimes made that 
these revivals are mere passionate spasms of popular feeling, 
without any hold on the more solid foundations of will and 
belief. 

In describing the growth of the movement in Pittsburgh, we 
can best describe the work in a graphic way by referring to 
individual cases. So far as the general outlines of the reform 
are concerned, they continued the same. Like an avalanche it 
was a swift, steady, monotonous movement, magnificent in its 
sweep, grand in results, but guided by a few simple laws and 
conditions. Once started, it became cumulative with such 
rapidity, that in a few weeks nothing else was talked of in the 
iron city. Thoughts of business, of social recreation, of the 
miscellaneous themes that ordinarily occupy the minds of men, 
were all swallowed up in the one absorbing topic. Petroleum 
oil, iron and steel, manufacturing, stocks and bonds lost their 
hold on the minds of men. 'The grand query was, " How shall 
I myself be saved," or " how shall I save my drunken, lost 
brother ?" 

The church organizations threw their powerful might into the 
struggle, without any thought of denominational success, and 
were very important factors in solidifying the results of the 
movement. The women of Pittsburgh, from the first, had 
prayed, and struggled, and labored with the most fervid zeal, 
for they saw how deeply involved was the salvation of num- 
berless family circles, the rehabilitation of shattered household 
gods. Let us now relate to the reader several graphic exam- 
ples and incidents, which will illustrate more vividly than any 
general description the success and strength of the wave of 
temperance reform, once it commenced to roll its pure and 
cleansing waters onward in a great wall. 

The following incidents are the recitals of prominent men 



150 THE TEIIE PATH ; 

at the Murphy meetings, and will he read Tnth great in- 
terest : 

David B. Hall was saved through the prayers of his wife. 
For years he had been a slave to intoxicating drink, and was 
known as such in all Pittsburgh. Now he had embraced relig- 
ion ; and he felt he had escaped danger forever. No one has 
been a more earnest, sincere co-worker than Mr. Hall in the 
Murphy movement. He has succeeded in reclaiming a vast 
number of drunkards ; and is still conducting the good work 
with zeal. 

Mr. Best, of Pittsburgh, had caused his family a great deal 
of sorrow by his intemperate habits. He signed the pledge in 
the Iron Gity, and found it the very hardest thing in his whole 
life to keep it. However, he conquered ; and he was now a 
happy man. He was a devoted " Murphy man." 

Mr. Charles Wenzell used to keep a drinking saloon in Pitts- 
burgh ; but sold out, on account of the business not paying 
well. He concluded that he would go to South America ; and 
went to New York to make preparations for the journey. 

When there he gave the idea up, and spent all the money he 
had with him. Then a great longing came over him for the 
old Iron City, and he returned. Murphy meetings were then 
being conducted, and to pass the time he dropped in to hear 
what these temperance people had to say for their cause. The 
next day he attended a church, the first he had been in for 
twenty years. The service had a wonderful effect on him — he 
desired to become a Christian. He also desired to sign the 
Murphy pledge. He sought out Francis Murphy, and asked 
his advice. If he gave up his old ways, his sporting habits, 
how could he make a living ? " God provides a way," said 
Murphy ; " He feeds the sparrows and clothes the lilies of the 
field." " But I am no sparrow !" Wenzell cried. "Try it," 
Murphy rejoined ; " and you will be provided for." 

The upshot of this interview was Mr. WenzelPs dedicating 
himself to the cause of total abstinence, becoming a member of 
the church, entirely leaving off his former habits. He has 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 151 

often remarked in his stirring addresses that he would not 
return to his old business if he knew it would bring him in 
hundreds of dollars a day. Mr. Wenzell has proved himself 
to be one of the strongest advocates of temperance, and a brave 
worker in the Murphy movement. 

Mr. John M. Nesbitt said at a meeting held in Pittsburgh : 
" I have studied law, gone into politics, become a candidate 
for Senatorial renown, and one glass of whiskey gained the 
victory over me and all my ambition. The morning of the 
election I was seen turning down a glass of whiskey by a gen- 
tleman who afterwards voted against me. That one vote de- 
feated me. I possess considerable stock in my native town. 1 
have no money ; but I have stock to the value of ten cents in 
every brick of every saloon in the place." 

- Harry Rawle had formerly been a liquor dealer in Pitts- 
burgh, but he signed the pledge and left the trade. He gave 
the following quaint testimony at one of the largest meetings 
held in the city : " This is the first time I have been before an 
audience. I am asked by Brother Murphy to say a few words. 
I will say them in my own way. I kept a saloon about four 
years ; I drank a great deal. I took a quiet little drink every 
morning till Murphy came. One day I thought I would go and 
see who and what this gentleman was. I dropped in. A man 
who knew me came up to me, and said : c You had better sign 
your name to the pledge.' I said : ' I don't drink much — I 
don't think it necessary.' 'I have seen you when you had too 
much,' he said. I said : 'I'm in the business, and I cannot 
sign it now, as I have nothing else to do.' A lady said : 'We 
will pray for you.' I said : c I would be glad of that.' I went 
home and told my friends I had seen Murphy. They asked 
me what I thought of him. I said : 'He is nice enough, and 
that is all there is of him.' I did not take much stock in him 
then.- After awhile, however, I was caught in the Murphy 
net. I have signed the pledge, and I mean to keep it." 

. The movement was not confined alone to reform, but also 
extended to charity. The afilicted were succored, and those 



152 THE TKUE PATH ; 

who had signed the pledge, and had nothing to do, were cared 
for until they could help themselves. Dinners were given on 
Christmas and ISFew Year's day, in the basement of the " Old 
Home," to all who were homeless and hungry. A most inter- 
esting description of Christmas that memorable year, in Pitts- 
burgh, appeared in one of the newspapers, which we take great 
pleasure in presenting to the reader. It is as follows : 

" Pittsburgh's Christmas is probably unparalleled in the 
annals of American history. It is safe to make the assertion 
that never before of a Christmas day, in any city of the west- 
ern hemisphere, has an edifice the size of the Fifth Avenue 
Methodist Church been so crammed with humanity, from early 
dawn till dewy eve, and from dewy eve until late in the night, 
with a crowd of people bent on temperance reform. Of all 
queer recreations for a Christmas day, temperance crusading 
appears to be the queerest. ' A Christmas drunk' has hereto- 
fore been a licensed irregularity, and people who have kept 
level-headed the remaining three hundred and sixty-four days 
of the year, have felt a moral obligation, arising out of respect 
for the hilarity of the season and heirloom festivities of the 
• Merrie Christmas tide,' to indulge in the wassail bowl and 
render homage to Bacchus. But Monday a multitude of people 
gave Bacchus the cold shoulder, and ignored the traditions of 
the past. Tom and Jerry sat lonesomely blinking at one another 
over these degenerate days, the proudest plume was pulled out. 
of the chanticleer's caudal appendage, brandy smashes thought 
the times had gone to smash, socially-inclined slings discovered 
themselves being slung aside ; and even Holland Tom jammed 
his cork down in his throat and gurgled forth his lamenta- 
tions, while Colonel Rye Tanglefoot wildly called for his troop- 
ers, and wept rivers of bug-juice when he fairly comprehended 
that the troopers, from the lamp-post picket to the vidette in 
the gutter, had deserted their posts and ' gone up to Murphy's.' 

"This temperance movement has thoroughly interested our 
citizens, and Christmas day they expressed it. The expression 
was not one of froth and foam cither, but had the solid body 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 153 

of a practical and substantial effort attending it, for in the 
church, while the crowd up stairs was shouting ' Hallelujah !' 
the crowd down stairs was sending delegations of turkey, 
ham, cold beef, cake, pies and coffee, into the interior depart- 
ments to announce the glad tidings that the pledge had been 
taken, and the department should no longer be outraged by 
the presence of plenipotentiaries from the court of King Al- 
cohol. One of the earliest principles introduced in this move- 
ment was the concession that it was but little use trying to 
convert a man with an empty stomach. So long as a glass of 
beer and a hearty lunch can be obtained for five cents, all the 
temperance orations ever delivered cannot convince a hungry 
man that the glass of beer is not a road to happiness. The 
good people of Pittsburgh recognize this fact, and knowing 
that the dull times have created a class of very hungry people 
in this city, when it was proposed at one of the temperance 
meetings to give everybody who wanted it a Christmas din- 
ner, hosts of kind-hearted matrons resolved themselves into 
committees of one and proceeded to furnish the material. 

" The Sunday-school room of the Fifth Avenue Methodist 
Church was converted into a dining-room, and the room imme- 
diately in its rear transmogrified into a refectory. Early 
Monday morning the provisions commenced to arrive. They 
came in boxes and baskets and bundles and barrels ; the 
widow's mite jostled the contribution of wealth, the plebeian 
ham leaned familiarly against the patrician turkey, and the 
humble doughnuts nestled under the shadow of the majestic 
pound cake. Stout matrons brought in plethoric baskets, lit- 
tle girls tugged along with big bundles, and little and big 
boys — after the manner of their sex — : < rolled them up and 
tumbled them up, any way to get them there,' while the sex- 
ton's wife and a lady who deserves great praise for her exer- 
tions in behalf of the hungry ones, had commenced to boil the 
coffee, of which beverage enough was drank to nearly float 
tlae Ajax off a sand bar. 

" During the preparations down stairs, the main body of the 



* 54 THE TRUE PATH ; 

church above was crowded with all classes of people, and 
prayer and temperance testimony were the order of the day. 
A short time before twelve o'clock it was announced that 
tickets would now be distributed (fifty at a time) to the hun- 
gry ones, good for an admittance to the dinner below. And 
then the fun commenced. The hungry ones had long been on 
hand chanting — 

" ' We come ! "We come ! 
The voracious bum ! 
Fee ! Fie ! Foe ! Fum ! 
Give us grub and we'll give up rum !' 

"The tramp brigade had heard of the c blow-out,' and were 
on hand in force. There were full delegations from all the 
different lodges of the fraternity ; the ' Texas Rangers of '76,' 
6 Centennial Cadgers,' c Hand-out Repudiators ' and ' Free and 
Independent Order of United Sit-down Solicitors,' and others* 
too numerous to mention. All were anxious to secure a ticket, 
and it was comical, yet a trifle pathetic, to witness the fears 
that some seemed to entertain lest they and the dinner might 
fail to connect. Many of them had an idea that it was neces- 
sary to sign the pledge before they could get their dinner 
(which was not the case, as no distinctions were made), but 
under the impression that dinner depended upon it, there took 
place a very sudden and laudable inclination to renounce the 
world, the flesh and the devil, as typified by whisky, and em- 
bark on the high-road to sobriety and something to eat, 
through the instrumentality of one of ' Murphy's life-boats.' 
Many fell into this mistake, and were highly indignant 
when the door-keeper below rejected their ' life-boats,' and 
told them to get one of the other kind. For over three hours 
there was a majesty of jaw-bone at work in the Sunday-school 
room. Tatterdemalion attire covering the gaunt and wasted 
forms, the pinched cheeks of hunger and want, the shabby and 
thread-bare attempt at respectability, the ' out-of-luck ' air of 
hard times, the anxious, restless, trouble-haunted eye, and the 
patient, sad look of hearts bowed down by long suffering, and 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 155 

lives ground out of shape beneath the heel of poverty, were 
all there, and all earnestly at work upon the viands. In a short 
time the dinner tickets became much soiled and torn, through 
constant and rough handling, so that a fragment of one was 
accepted as a passport. The great unwashed did not fail to 
avail themselves of this advantage. Some, for reasons' of their 
own, were disinclined to either sign the pledge or go into the 
church after a ticket. These would await on the outside for 
some braver comrade to sally forth with his piece of paste- 
board, and having equitably divided it up before them, three 
and sometimes four would go on the same ticket. But no 
objections were made and no refusals— all was good nature, 
affability, gQod will and fraternity. 

" Many ladies were in attendance and assisted in serving out 
the good things. Prominent among these was Mrs. Lincoln, 
wife of Mr. Lincoln, the organist. This lady's efforts in behalf 
of the temperance revival have been earnest and never flag- 
ging. Her fascinating vocalism has been given freely and 
without affectation or reserve at nearly all of the meetings, 
and yesterday the little lady was busy as a bee the whole day 
attending to the wants of the hungry multitude. 

"Mrs. Collins and Mrs. Long, of the Young Men's Home, 
were prominent in originating and carrying out the benevolent 
enterprise ; together with the noble assistance of Mrs, 
Morris, Miss Hubley, Mrs. Childs, Mrs. Fulton, Miss Annie 
Baldwin, Mrs. Frew, Mrs, Nelson, Mrs. Duncan, Miss Scott, 
Mrs. Davenport, Mrs. and Miss Moore, and others — ladies who 
literally obeyed the injunction "feed the hungry and clothe 
the naked," and who have the blessings of many a heart made 
happy on Christmas day through their instrumentality. 

" During the day Mr. Murphy received as a Christmas gift 
a loaf of bread ten feet long from Mr. J. B. Toungson, the 
confectioner. This Staff of Life was on exhibition in the ex- 
temporized refectory, and many leaned upon it. About half- 
past three o'clock in the afternoon the last hungry man ap- 
peared to be satisfied, though the dining-room was kept open 



156 THE TRUE PATH 



until after six for all who wished to eat, the crowd died away,' 
and only solitary and isolated empty stomachs dropped in to 
adipose their ribs. The number of those who had partaken of 
the good cheer was by actual count 1,205. 

"During the gastronomic services below, spiritual services 
were in progress in the church above. As before mentioned, 
a crowd filled the edifice all day long, among which were many 
ladies. The singing was conducted by a volunteer choir, led 
by either Mr. or Mrs. Lincoln or Miss Smythe, and an organ 
accompaniment by either Mr. Lincoln or Mr. Dunbar. Messrs. 
Paisley, Jacobs, Woodson, Barbour, Burns, and a host of 
others, are in frequent attendance, while the audience and a 
crowd of silvery-voiced ladies scattered through the house are 
at all times ready to join in, and it would be difficult to find 
better congregational singing than that which takes place. 
The songs are the old familiar battle hymns of the revivalists, 
< Hold the Fort,' < What Shall the Harvest Be ? and others of 
that kind. Nothing of the ' Cold Water Regimental Chorus ' 
sort has yet been attempted, and it is sincerely to be hoped it 
never will. 

" Another peculiar feature of this revival is the amount of 
' sticking' that is being done. Heretofore it. has been too 
often the practice to reform one day and go around as an 
awful example the next. But in the present instance it is 
different. The pledge has now been opened for signatures 
over nine weeks, and out of the forty thousand who have 
signed it the ' back-sliders ' would not make a corporal's guard. 
The men,, who sign seem to identify themselves with the move- 
ment, and are constantly on hand at all the meetings. They 
encourage one another, and it is a very rare thing to hear the 
revival spoken of disrespectfully by anyone. Another feature 
consists of the generosity of sentiment that has sprung up 
among the young men of Pittsburgh. Not that they did not 
possess these good qualities before, but they are now more 
pronounced and have taken a more active and practical shape. 
Let who will put in an appearance, if he is in trouble or desti* 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 157 

tute he will find somebody to help him. In fact, Pittsburgh 
is experiencing an enlargement of the heart, as well as a tem- 
perance revival. Each young fellow constitutes himself a 
committee, and if he is applied to and has his hands full, he 
passes the applicant around among c the gang ' until some one 
is found who can carry a little more weight." 

There had been established a sewing society, and extensive 
donations were received, and distributions of clothing made, 
under the charge of Captain Shannon, each day at the church. 
The dull times rendered it impossible to secure employment 
for all, but the worthy citizens of Pittsburgh had strenuously 
exerted themselves in the matter, and many idle men were 
provided for. The meetings, originally confined to the " Old 
Home," were widely extended, and now held each evening in 
fully thirty churches in the city and vicinity. Temperance 
clubs were organized on all sides, and, in the vernacular of the 
river men, the cause was booming. 

The laity had been most active in the cause. Among those 
churches that threw their doors wide open to temperance re- 
form, and gave it so cheering a welcome, were the Wesley M. 
E. Chapel, Smithfield Street M. E., Emery M. E., Arch Street 
M. E., Alleghany, North Avenue M. E., Alleghany, South 
Common M. E., Alleghany, Centennary M. E., Walton M. E., 
South Side Union M. E., First Methodist, Fifth Methodist, 
Soho, Second Methodist, South Side, Sharpsburg Methodist, 
Birmingham Methodist, Second Presbyterian, Temperanceville 
Presbyterian, Central Presbyterian, Cumberland Presbyterian, 
and a host of others. The pastors who were active in the 
movement are : Rev. Messrs. Clark, Templeton, Thomas, 
Frazier, Gill, Donohoo, Senons, Shields, Scovel, Murray, Cowl, 
Wallace, Sirites, Hamilton, Smith, Vernon, McGuire, Snyder, 
Cox, Baker, Ferguson, and a great many others. 

One of Mr. Murphy's hopes is that some day there will be a 
home in Pittsburgh for reformed men — " a monument*" as 
some one has aptly said, "to' sobriety, and a light-house for 
those who had been shipwrecked on the reefs of intemperance." 



158 THE TRUE PATH ; 

This desire on the part of the hero of the cause has, as yet, 
not reached consummation ; but there is a place in the 
" Smoky City " for the reclaimed. It consists of a pleasant 
reading-room, cheap eating-house, and a fine sanitarium. A 
meeting was held by those anxious for the erection of a build- 
ing, or the renting of one for the aforesaid purpose. There 
were nearly all the prominent men of the city present. 

Mr. Murphy made one of his effective speeches, in w r hich he 
said : " that it was the duty of the citizens of Pittsburgh to 
establish a temperance light-house, a beacon for the mariner on 
life's stormy sea, and a harbor of refuge for those who sought 
to escape the dread maelstrom of drunkenness." He spoke at 
some length on the personal efficacy of reform, and argued 
that individual effort alone could accomplish what legislative 
and municipal authorities had failed to do. Before the meet- 
ing adjourned many came forward and subscribed liberally in 
aid of the worthy project. 

Francis Murphy received a weekly salary of $125, for his 
labor in Pittsburgh, from the Young Men's Temperance Union. 
He deserved this ; and it was only right that he w T as paid it. 
Some officious parties, however, took it up, and rang such dis- 
cordant chimes, making unkind and uncalled for remarks, 
both on the lecturer and the cause, that he was forced to 
notice it. If any man earned his pay, it was he ; and if other 
temperance lecturers are paid for their services in sums of 
$100 or $200 a night, surely he ought to receive as much, and 
even more ; for, looking at the subject in that light, no one 
has ever been as successful as he on the temperance platform. 

At one of the noonday meetings, in the midst of this dis- 
cussion, Mr. Murphy alluded to it, and said that he did not 
approve of a salary, and that hereafter his services would be 
gratuitously given. The vast concourse present was brought 
to tears, and many denounced, in bitter terms, the parties that 
interfered in the matter, and expressed great sympathy and 
love for their noble leader. Many came forward, and pledged 
themselves to defray all his expenses as long as Pittsburgh 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 159 

had the honor of his presence. This turn of affairs was the 
comment of the whole town, during the day, and one could 
see, and judge by the remarks flying about, that Pittsburgh 
loved and revered Francis Murphy in no slight degree. No 
one could charge him with being grasping and mercenary. 
His large heart is in his work ; his purse is open to the appeals 
of the unfortunate, and he works to save the fallen, and to 
gain the glorious reward of a conscience that acquitted him 
of any selfish or interested motive. Mr. Murphy was vehem- 
ently assailed by certain newspapers with mere reform dema- 
goguism, to use a phrase drawn from another field of effort. 
The mere fact that he received a salaTy seems to have been 
the sole foundation underlying the accusation. The combined 
malignity and childishness of such a charge make themselves 
patent to everyone who studies the conditions of the case. 
Mr. Murphy's celebrity had already made him an object of 
national curiosity. No other man had ever achieved such 
results in the history of temperance reform. For his success 
was not merely a personal one, L 6., the ability to draw large 
and enthusiastic audiences, but extended beyond surface agi- 
tation, and struck deep and permanent roots in the hearts of 
men. It has never failed to be the case, that after the de- 
parture of Murphy from any place, meetings were continued 
under his name by able f ollowers in the path he marked out, 
the fruits of which were as important almost as those wrought 
by the man's personal presence and effort. What better test 
than this of the profound significance of this reform movement! 
It could not be expected that Francis Murphy, the possessor 
of an extraordinary, nay almost unexampled power, and a 
poor man at that, with a large family to support and educate, 
should live purely on voluntary contributions. The conse- 
crated ministers of the gospel do not carry the habit of the 
primitive apostolic times into practical usage now-a-days. 
The social and religious economy of the nineteenth century do 
not permit the preacher and reformer to travel about with a staff, 
and sandal shorn, proclaiming the word of truth as an itinerant 



160 THE TRUE PATH ; 

pilgrim. Mr. Murphy has shown a very moderate and modest 
estimate of his owl pecuniary worth, specially as the lecture 
bureaus have offered him extraordinary terms for his regular 
services on the platform, in the same way as Gough, Beecher, 
and other celebrities sell their services. 

A candid judgment, then, compels the conviction that Fran- 
cis Murphy, whatever else may be his faults, can hardly be 
convicted of self-seeking and disinterested motives, so far as 
his career up to the present time would indicate. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 161 



CHAPTER XV. 

CONTINUATION OP THE PITTSBURGH WORK. — MURPHY'S DEPART- 
URE FOLLOWED BY CONTINUED ACTIVITY.— FEATURES OF 
THE REFORM MOVEMENT.— A HOST OF FOLLOWERS AND 

CO-LABORERS. THE INAUGURATION OF THE MOVEMENT AT 

PHILADELPHIA. 

The Murphy movement was steadily conducted, and grew 
in favor more and more each day. The noon-tide meetings 
were quite popular, being very earnest and full of religion. 
The night meetings, however, were more largely attended. 
Here were found evidences of interest, enthusiasm, and good 
little short of marvellous. Daily scores of men, known 
throughout the entire community as hard drinkers, stepped up 
to the tables, and took the pledge. The " boys " used the 
room during the day as a reading, conversation and smoking 
room. It was a genuine treat to get with them, and hear them 
speak of Francis Murphy. How they loved and revered him ! 
Verily he is a man among men ! 

Every one had come generously and heartily to the front to 
help on this great work. Ministers, journalists, men of wealth, 
and others, had nobly aided the movement, giving liberally of 
both their time and money to that purpose. The railroad 
companies had passed the Murphy speakers from point to 
point, sending also destitute pledge signers to their friends, 
all because they were a part, so to speak, of Murphy. And 
men and women had gone to the headquarters every day and 
night to keep up the spirit of .good, and to push the cause on- 
ward as regularly as clock-work, not asking any remuneration 



1()2 THE TRUE PATH ; 

save that of cheering words and signs of encouragement and 
success. 

To outsiders the enthusiasm and devotion exhibited by the 
Murphyites in their cause was a source of much surprise. That 
their love and earnestness should last caused people to think 
seriously ; and this serious thinking generally resulted in their 
conversion, and enlisting them in the already mighty army. 

The tiny spark lighted in their hearts by their noble leader 
burned and would continue to burn — was now a flaming light 
that shone out in full glory upon the whole civilized world. 

The Murphyites loved their work. They attended their 
meetings regularly, and prayed, and sung the dear old Gospel 
songs with the same power as when Francis Murphy himself 
stood in the Smoky City among them like a king. They lived 
for their cause ; they lived to save the lost and dying. Stir- 
ring speeches were delivered at the meetings by the brave 
" boys ;" and now and then he whom they devoutly followed 
paid them a flying visit, and roused them to greater work. 
Every time he came there, there was a mighty crowd to hear 
his graphic and pleasing talk. One night he was announced 
to appear in the Central Presbyterian church, and long before 
the appointed time the building was packed. 

On his appearance the dear " Old Home" choir burst out in 
that sweet, and to him, the finest of songs, " I Hear Thy Wel- 
come Voice." He shook hands with every one he passed ; his 
face beamed with his delight at being again with the "boys." 
lie addressed them in the following earnest words : 
Mr. President and Dear Friends: — 

I am glad to come to you again. I am glad to see you 
again and hear your welcome voices. It is a great pleasure to 
know that we are welcome when returning home, and there 
is something pleasant ' about a hearty greeting. We all 
feel it, and it does me good to know that I have your esteem 
and confidence. I am glad to be with the "boys " again, who 
have stood nobly by this movement ever since its commence- 
ment. There are some who say we will not keep the pledge, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 163 

but time will tell. I had a most delightful trip. Have been 
talking and traveling over some of the ground which the boys 
from Pittsburgh have worked, and have found the people 
holding them in grateful remembrance for the good they ac- 
complished. No matter what people say about us, we will say 
no unkind words against them. I am a lover of peace, and 
believe in the reclaiming power of the gospel of love and kind- 
ness. If we do good we must be merciful and kind. When 
we come to die it will be sweet to know that we have been 
unkind to no one. Let us keep on in this great reform, and 
with clean hands and pure hearts we will gain the victory, no 
matter who may oppose. I have just come from Lexington, 
Ky., where Charles Wenzel is doing a grand work. He has 
secured about three thousand signers, and Mr. Nesbitt has ob- 
tained about two thousand among the colored people. I once 
asked the merchants of Pittsburgh to put up a building, and I 
believe they will do so yet. Other cities have their own read- 
ing-rooms and tabernacles, and we must have them in this city. 
Pittsburgh has done a noble work, and the good cause 
will spread wider and deeper ; not because I am in it, 
but because it is of God. In God is our trust, and with 
our motto we will go on saving men and making homes 
happy. I am glad you are in this church. Its pastor, Rev. 
Senour, is a noble man ; God bless him ! I expect to com- 
mence the work in Troy, New York, some time in November. 
We should have an anniversary in this city on the 26th of 
November. Now is the time to get ready for it, so that we 
may have a grand time. Do not be discouraged, boys. The 
country is waiting for the movement, and why should not 
Pittsburgh still be in the front ? What a good thing it is to 
see and know of the happy wives and children and homes that 
this movement has brought to our land. Then why should we 
be discouraged because some oppose and throw obstacles in 
our way? Let us go on in the right, "With Malice to none 
and Charity for ail," and God will give us the nation. 

One of the notable events of the meetings held at the head- 



164 THE TRUE PATH ; 

quarters was the reformation of James Onslow, a politician 
and writer of some repute. He had been a hard drinker for a 
long time, and had been given up long since by his friends. 
The Murphyites, however, despaired not ; and finally suc- 
ceeded in converting him. Mr. Onslow delivered the follow- 
ing speech, after his reformation : 
"Ladies and. Gentlemen : — 

" Those of you who have known me for the last ten, fifteen 
or twenty years (arid that number is by no means small), will 
doubtless be surprised to see me here to-night, and many of 
you will say, ( Jim Onslow has drank whisky too long, and 
loves it too well, to ever be able to keep his pledge, or become 
a sober man.' For entertaining this opinion, my friends, you 
are not to blame. My past life justifies you, perhaps, in think- 
ing and saying just what I have indicated (although I never 
signed the pledge and broke it), but believing in the idea 
'that while the lamp of life holds out to burn, the vilest sin- 
ner (or drunkard) may return,' I resolved last night, in bed, 
all alone, with God's help, aided by your prayers, and sus- 
tained and encouraged by your friendship, to make a strong 
effort in that direction. Last night, about twelve o'clock, 
awakening from an uneasy slumber, a voice seemed to say, 
' Oh, my son, remember no drunkard can enter the Kingdom 
of Heaven ; if you persist in living as you have been doing, 
you can never see those who loved you well, and whom you 
loved so dearly, while we were all together on the earth 
below.' Without believing in dreams, ghosts or hobgoblins, 
I must admit that this semi-vision appeared like a call or 
warning from above, to halt in my career of dissipation, if I 
would avert the wrath to come. I have slept none since, and 
this morning my mind was fully made up that whisky and old 
* Cussewago ' would part company forever. 

"And just here let me sa} T ,by way of parenthesis, that those 
who expect me to abuse and rail out against my old friends, 
the saloon keepers, will be mistaken ; also to remark, for the 
benefit of several of those old friends, that while they will not 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 165 

be called upon to score up any more drinks against a former 
good customer, thev shall all of them be paid every cent now 
chalked down against him ; but here, with the help of Him 
who rules and reigns above, whose attributes are mercy, peace 
and love, the accounts will close. Fully indorsing the idea of 
that great apostle of temperance, my eloquent and enthusiastic 
countryman, Francis Murphy, that abusing people is not the 
way to reform them, no harsh or unkind word shall ever 
escape my lips, either about he who sells, or he who drinks, 
the life-destroying liquid. If I can save myself from filling a 
drunkard's grave, as many of my former associates are now 
doing, and keep some other poor devil like myself from doing 
the same thing, it will, in my humble judgment, be far better 
than abusing anyone. And now, in conclusion, let me say a 
word to the Jadies here present, noble representatives of those 
who are going about like angels of mercy, continually doing 
good ; representatives of her who was last at the cross and 
first at the sepulchre. May God, .in his infinite goodness and 
mercy, watch over, bless and protect you, now and forever. 
May your pathway through this life be strewn with flowers of 
the brightest hue, and finally when you have passed the dark 
valley and shadow of death, may He take you to Himself 5 
where you will enjoy the society of those whom you most re- 
semble, is the earnest prayer of your humble servant." 

The good done by the " Union " cannot be estimated ; it is 
impossible to do so. Hundreds upon hundreds were reclaimed 
by the brave " boys ;" and now are leading prosperous, happy 
lives in all parts of the State. James Onslow, of whose re- 
formation we have already spoken, has entered the lists, and 
works well and successfully. Dave Hall's work is too well 
known to be minutely described here ; it is sufficient to say of 
him that he has done nobly for the good cause. Win. Hill, 
Bob Love, Thomas Jones, and the other boys of the " Old 
Home " are actively engaged in the Murphy movement ; and 
have done untoll good. These- "boys" have been called to 
all parts of the country to speak to eager, curious crowds of 



166 THE TRUE PATH ; 

their reformation, work and their leader. Their speeches have 
been earnest and convincing ; and their success has been great 
wherever they have spoken. They carry conviction with them 
because they are earnest in the extreme ; and because they 
have been all drinkers, and were saved. Noble "boys!" 
Your reward will surely be great in the glorious by-and-by ; 
and you will be crowned with the universal love of man, and 
the blessing of God. Your names will live ; hundreds will 
bless you, and murmur your names in their supplications at 
the seat of mercy. Verily those that live for the mere sake of 
doing good to man shall live, not for a little while, but forever ! 

A noble feature of the Murphy wave in Pittsburgh is the 
work done by those earnest, zealous ladies that have come for- 
ward so readily. 

Several unions have sprung up ; and are now in a flourish- 
ing condition. The Woman's Christian Temperance Union is 
known throughout this country for its success in the cause. 
The faithful women that compose this society have been 
fighting against intemperance for years. "At times," says a 
well-known authority, "the meetings were small, and things 
looked dark ; but still they held out, praying that God would 
give them success. When the Murphy movement was inau- 
gurated in this city, many of these women assisted nobly, and 
have continued to aid the c boys ' in every way possible. 
This has greatly added to the numbers and interest of their 
Sunday meetings, until at the present time the room is crowded 
every Sunday afternoon. For a while the Woman's Christian 
Temperance Alliance met in the same room, but the two 
organizations were consolidated by the Alliance uniting with 
the Union, and the two were afterwards known as the Woman's 
Christian Temperance Union." On one occasion a very inter- 
esting address was delivered by Mrs. M. Cora Bland, of New 
York, and formerly editress of the Ladles' Own Magazine. 
We giv r e it in this instance as it clearly defines woman's posi- 
tion in the world, and what great good she can do in the 
blessed cause of temperance. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 167 

Mrs. Bland said : 

" ' Woman is the power behind the throne/ c She moulds 
men to do her will,' 6 The hand that rocks the cradle is the 
hand that rocks the world,' are" stereotyped compliments that 
have been given from almost every pulpit and rostrum in the 
land. To say that she possesses a tithe of the influence attrib- 
uted to her, is to accuse her of holding a power for good which 
she criminally refuses to exercise, for it is patent to all that 
hitherto she has done very little toward staying this great evil 
of intemperance. Still she loves virtue and abhors vice. She 
would that all men were good and pure, that they were noble 
and true and God-like ; and think you she possesses the power 
to make them so and refuses to exercise it ? Ah ! no. She 
righteously covets the power to say to this flood-tide of intem- 
perance, with its attendant evils, 'thus far shalt thou go and no 
farther.' Had the power been hers she would have banished 
the liquor traffic from the land. Instead," said the speaker, 
" the most pious and respectable mothers are compelled to wit- 
ness the descent of their loved ones, for whom they have 
hoped and prayed so much, go down, down to ruin, while they, 
with bleeding hearts, stood powerless to avert their doom. 
Tell me not that men do women's bidding when they license 
liquor saloons and other haunts of immorality. In view of 
the crime, the injustice, the drunkenness and debauchery of 
men, it is no compliment to women to say 'they rule the 
world.' * It is time we were done with polished shams and 
glittering falsehoods, and as earnest men and women look at 
facts as they exist and take hold of the work understandingly. 
My religion teaches me that if the world is to be redeemed 
from the dominion of appetite and sensualism, it must be done 
by human endeavor, addressed to the work in accordance with 
God's method of regenerating mankind. Intemperance is a 
physical, social, mental, and moral evil, resulting from viola- 
tions of the physical, social, mental, and moral laws." 

She here dila ted upon the effects of alcohol in past and pres* 
ent times ; and closed with this touching appeal : 



168 THE TRUE PATH ; 

" O, women of America, responsibilities rest upon yon 
greater than any that ever burdened the women of any clime 
or country, and this because your privileges are greater, 
higher, grander than ever crowned women before. To you as 
to none others is the sunlit summit of the mount of wisdom 
accessible. 'Tis your privilege to add to the potent yet fleeting 
charm of beauty those enduring and more potent graces of the 
heart and brain, that comes with the broader and higher cul- 
ture so freely offered you. 'Tis yours to preside over homes 
made delightful by your natural grace and culture and safe 
through your virtue and intelligence. 'Tis yours to guide the 
footsteps and form the habits of the young as mother and 
teacher, and yours also to mould society by models of virtue." 

These noblest of noble women have cheered the " boys " in 
their fight — have made the darkest days of trial and temptation 
light and bright by their ennobling presence, their influence 
and earnestness. Very many unfortuates, staggering down 
the easy road of sin, and tottering on the brink of the grave, 
have been guided gently away from it, out into the glad light 
of right and purity ; desolate homes have been brightened, 
and made homes again by the blessed reformation, through 
the loving labor and prayers of these women, of the dear 
ones astray ; and sad hearts cheered, and manhood restored to 
its native grandeur. Not once did these Christian women 
falter — not once did they lose courage and hope ; but steadily 
went on, day in and day out, praying, helping and saving. 
And they have been crowned with success beyond their expec- 
tations. God has heard them ; and through them hundreds 
have been plucked, " as a brand from the burning," to walk in 
sobriety, usefulness and happiness along the way of life to the 
gates of Heaven, which will be wide open when they journey 
thitherward. 

The anniversary of Francis Murphy's advent in Pittsburg 
was observed at Library Hall, Sunday night, November 
25, 1877. It was conducted under the auspices of the "Old 
Home " Union, and was a grand success in every particular. 



OR, GOSPEL- TEMPERANCE. 169 

It was long after twelve o'clock ere the vast assemblage dis- 
persed. It was impossible for Francis Murphy to be present ; 
but, despite- this great drawback and -disappointment, the ex- 
ercises were of a most interesting character, and were received 
with much applause. That giant in the noble army of tem- 
perance, Dave Hall, led the meeting in a very felicitous man- 
ner ; and short, entertaining remarks were made by a very 
large number of the most prominent "boys." The great work 
done during the year was reviewed, and congratulations ex- 
tended to those who had worked so well. The future fields in 
different sections of the country were discussed, and the evil 
ahead of them scanned seriously." Hands were grasped in 
hearty friendliness, and the " boys " were drawn yet closer to 
one another, and strengthened for the long fight. Could 
Francis Murphy have seen them, how glad would have been 
his great heart ! Could he have been in their midst, and 
heard them speak of him, how pleased he would have 
been ! It was a night never to be forgotten. It will live in 
the minds of those that participated in it forever. It will be 
looked back upon with emotions that are utterly indescribable. 

At a meeting held in Oakland, one of the suburbs of Pitts- 
burgh, the Rev. Mr. Vannote introduced W. C. Moreland, 
Esq., before Mr. Murphy, then in Pittsburgh on a short visit, 
who delivered a speech as follows : 

" There has grown up in this nation a custom of speech-mak- 
ing on occasions of this kind when distinguished men meet 
with their friends ; and extremely is it my duty to-night to 
welcome a man whose reputation for deeds of charity and love 
are so well known in this city. I know that he needs no intro- 
duction at my hand to those of you here who have felt the 
beneficent influence of his good deeds. His name has become 
a household word ; his labors of love and charity are so well 
known that they require no panegyric from me. I pray God 
that his :abors shall go on widening until still greater victo- 
ries are gained not only amongst us here in this city, but all 
over our beloved country. As he has manifested all that is 



170 THE TRUE PATH ; 

good and loving in man, we all hope that he may ever keep 
his name unsullied ; that he may not w eary in his good work, 
and as his words shall go ringing in our valleys and over our 
mountains that they may be both a benison and a benediction. 
May there be open hands and homes here where he may ever 
find a welcome. Peace and happiness attend him. And now 
I have no need to tell you that I refer to the great apostle of 
temperance, Francis Murphy, who will now speak for himself. 

Mr. Murphy was then introduced by the Rev. Mr. Vannote, 
and spoke in the following happy manner : 
"Mr. President: — 

" This is an unexpected honor to have an address of welcome 
given me in this beautiful temple of worship. I do not know 
what inconvenience it will be to me to remain here to-night, 
but whatever it might be I think Brother Vannote is responsi- 
ble for my being here. lie has a faculty for holding on that 
I could not overcome ; but I hope that Brother Miller will be 
able to send me up the beautiful waters of the Monongahela 
in time for me to meet my appointments. 

" Anyhow, I am very glad to be here. I feel perfectly at 
home in your midst. I have an abiding interest in this city. 
My youngest daughter is with Mr. Dravo, who has so kindly 
given her a place in his good home. They say that where the 
heart is there is home, and my heart is here always. I am 
glad to be here and respond to this address of welcome. 

" I remember very well the first time I spoke to you. Mr. 
Moreland introduced me to the people of Pittsburgh. Feel- 
ing my want of education I feared that I would not be able to 
command language to express what I wanted to say. I looked 
at this young David who has no difficulty in speaking. He is 
perfectly at ease in framing his thoughts in such beautiful lan- 
guage that one falls in love with him while listening to him. 
I call him the golden-mouthed boy of Pittsburgh. From the 
beginning of the movement in this city to the present he has 
been my steadfast friend. He and Brother Vannote have 
stood steadfastly by me. I shall never forget my first meeting 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 171 

with my dear Brother Vannote. I stepped into his editorial 
sanctum to ascertain whether or not he would give me any as- 
sistance through his paper. He looked at me for a moment, 
and I suppose thought I was a poor excuse for a temperance 
lecturer, but he said : ' We will give you a hearing, 5 and, 
blessed be God, he did give me a hearing. Right here on 
this stand is the" young man who wrote some of the most 
favorable reports of the work from the very first. I 
should like to have seen the young man who gave the 
first report. When I read the report I could not keep 
back the tears. May God bless the daily press of Pitts- 
burgh for the great assistance it has rendered in this glorious 
work. The city of Pittsburgh has been called the home of 
this great moral reform. There are some people so intent on 
saving one portion of the human family that they will let the 
other be lost. They do not realize the power of Divine love, 
which is so far reaching and infinitely greater than mere human 
love. There is a great difference of opinion as to the way of 
obtaining total abstinence. This movement in which we are 
engaged proposes to save all, and there is no doubt but that it 
will be a grand success in this country. There are good men 
engaged in its manufacture. I do not want to conduct a tem- 
perance reform that will hurt any man. We must not con- 
demn any one. We can succeed better with love and kind- 
ness according to our motto, c With Malice toward none, and 
Charity for all.' It will be better for us to present it in such 
a way that all men will fall in love with temperance, and not, 
compel them to adopt it. 

" The moment you begin to fight men that moment you will 
find opposition. I have just come from INew York where the 
hotels are, in the goodness of God, giving up this business. 
As long as four-fifths of the population drink, so long will men 
engage in selling rum, and it cannot be stopped unless the men 
can be induced to sx>p drinking. You can't drive them ; they 
will find ways of getting it. The stringent law they had in 
Portland couldn't stop it. One day I saw there was an old 



172 THE TKUE PATH ; 

lady in the*:narket selling eggs at a dollar and a half a dozen ! 
The wonderful pullets to lay such eggs ! ! But the eggs had 
been emptied of their original contents, filled with whisky and 
sealed up again. I never fought the prohibitory law. When 
I was engaged in selling liquor in Portland, and the officers 
seized my stock, I never attempted to get it back by false 
swearing. There were men who were regular false swearers, 
and there were those who were ever ready to get them to 
swear for them. They were professional swearers who could 
be obtained whenever they were wanted. 

" This is a handsome picture. This church so nicely decorated. 
There are some beautiful pictures that come to us in life. I re- 
member seeing one during a trip I once took to the mountains. 
It was a beautiful day, and as we drove along under the green 
canopy of the forest — beautiful birch trees and maples swing- 
ing back and forth in the gentle zephyrs — and the bright sun- 
light of heaven dripping down through the foliage as though 
it were liquid gold. We passed on, while On our right and 
left the rippling brooks from the hillsides came dancing down 
until they reached the shaded dell below where they flowed 
along in crystal beauty. But we were anxious to get a view 
of the still greater beauty that was soon to meet our admiring 
gaze. Our horses were urged forward, and onward and up- 
ward we went until we reached the crown of the hill and could 
see the beautiful valley spread out before us. The majestic 
grandeur of the scene which was now presented to our aston- 
ished gaze was extremely gratifying. I was thrilled to the 
veriest depths of my heart. Away yonder in the distance I 
could see the top of a great giant which stood still as though 
dead, and nearly concealed by the distant hills, looking like a 
veil thrown over it. On all sides we could see the moun- 
tains standing in all their glorious majesty with their crowned 
heads bowing to each other, as though they themselves felt 
the awful grandeur and dignity of their position. I looked up 
into the sky and saw the bright clouds — God's chariots — so 
wonderfully white that there was not a speck upon them ; 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 173 

there they rolled along, and as it were, enjoying the great 
beauty of the scene beneath. I shall never forget the picture 
that was there presented to my wondering view. 

" But what was that compared to the scene here to-night. 
You are all gathered here to-night, with happy hearts in this 
beautiful temple built for the worship of God, to help forward 
the glorious cause of truth and justice. More precious is the 
picture which we enjoy here to-night than the one I have de- 
scribed. I feel that I shall never be able to command language 
adequate to give a description of it. Grand and beautiful as 
was the mountain scenery I endeavored to describe, it will 
pass away. We too, shall soon pass away to our homes above, 
to scenes of infinitely greater beauty. Beautiful as is the 
world, grand as are many of its scenes, grander and more 
beautiful still is a purified soul. 

" May it be the delight of our life that no stain or dishonor 
shall come upon us ; that Christ shall live in us and reign over 
us. This is the sincere prayer of my heart. And when all our 
meetings are over here, when all the beautiful things of this 
world have passed away, may we all meet in the eternal sun- 
light of joy in the world above. Good night. God bless you." 

The wonderful success achieved by Francis Murphy the 
three months he was in Pittsburgh, travelled to Philadelphia, 
and awakened a lively interest in many philanthropists and 
prominent gentlemen of that city. He had been to a place 
notorious for its very drunkenness ; and under his influence 
about 80,000 persons appended their names to his pledge of 
total abstinence. What untold good he might do in Philadel- 
phia ! These gentlemen, true Christians, every one of theni, 
realized that their city required his presence, and immediately, 
at that ; and they felt assured the same remarkable success 
following in his track, wherever he went, would but be re- 
peated here. 

Stimulated by these feelings they came together, and agreed 
upon some definite action. Mr. John Wanamaker, known 
almost everywhere as one of the most successful of clothiers, 



174 THE TBUE PATH ;. 

opened a correspondence with the temperance apostle, the re- 
sult of vfhich was an earnest, nay urgent invitation to the lat- 
ter gentleman from the former to come among them, and do 
what he could to lift the thousands of degraded, drunken per- 
sons, that were like large black blots on their community, out 
of the low position into which they had fallen, to lead useful, 
w T orthy lives. Francis Murphy was not the man to be deaf to 
this appeal, or likely to close his heart to it. He received it 
gladly, and hastened to the Quaker City as if on flying 
pinions. 

On Wednesday evening, March 7, 1877, he made his first 
appearance in the Academy of Music. The vast hall was 
crowded by a most brilliant and appreciative audience. On 
the stage were noted clergymen of different denominations. 
The well known and beloved philanthropist, George H. Stuart, 
presided, and made some happy remarks. Rev. G. Dana Bord- 
man read a passage from the Scripture, and Rev. Henry C. 
McCook lifted his voice in a short prayer of great power and 
fervor. 

Colonel G. H. Hetherington, of Pittsburgh, rose, and re- 
marked that he had come with Mr. Murphy, and had been con- 
verted by him in Pittsburgh, and described what good had 
been done there, and what was going on. After other short 
speeches from noted gentlemen, Mr. Murphy was introduced. 
He stood before them like a king, and every eye in that audi- 
ence " took in " his personal appearance. What they beheld 
was a man of five feet ten inches, robust and leonine physique, 
high, broad shoulders, apparently weighing fully one hundred 
and ninety pounds ; a short, thick neck, supporting a long 
head, with closely cut iron-gray hair, a -low, broad brow, deep 
set, piercing black eyes, bushy black eyebrows, and a mouth 
wholly concealed by an enormous coal-black moustache. His 
presence was attractive and imposing. The audience was in- 
stinctively drawn to him by an open, frank, manly way he had, 
and a certain animal magnetism, with which he is surely en- 
dowed. The moment he opened bis lips and spoke, the place 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 175 

was as quiet as the grave ; and many of those present leaned 
eagerly forward to catch every tone, every modulation of his 
deep, rich, and vibrating voice. His address was felicitous, 
and was full of humor. He pathetically told the sad story of 
his life, graphically showing how low he had sunk from the 
use of intoxicating drink. 

There were few of his listeners dry-eyed as he told them of 
his prison life, and his reformation while in confinement. With 
a power that surprised every one he urged, begged all yojmg 
men to abstain from intoxicants and lead pure, sober lives. 
At his cordial invitation hundreds came up to where he stood 
at the conclusion of the lecture, and signed the pledge. 
This was the first appearance of Francis Murphy among the 
Philadelphians ; and he created a warm impression. His 
auditors went away with his inspired words ringing tuneful 
chimes in their hearts, and with his noble presence reflected 
glowingly before their mind's eye. It was no easy matter to 
forget his imposing front, or the spell it cast on all that came 
within its vicinity ; no easy matter to forget what he said, 
so earnest was he from first to last. Mr. Murphy went earn- 
estly to work, and a series of meetings were conducted in the 
Bethany Sunday-school building, corner of Twenty-second 
and Bainbridge streets. The crowds were so dense that the 
building could scarcely contain them. Prominent people, 
recognizing what great good might result from the cause, 
and realizing the feeling of the populace, took hold of it, and 
seeing the necessity of a larger hall, secured the gigantic 
Tabernacle building on North Broad street. On some occa- 
sions this building was likewise found to be of too limited a 
space to accommodate the eager crowds' that rushed from all 
points to see and hear the temperance apostle. 

It is impossible to paint the picture presented at each meet- 
ing, and whenever or wherever Francis Murphy was to speak. 
It was like an ovation. Ladies pushed forward with men in 
the general rush and struggle for a seat, and hundreds waited 
hours before the appointed time for the doors to be flung 



176 THE TKUE PATH ; 

open. To hear, to see him, seemed to be the only wish in the 
hearts of thousands. 

When in his presence they sat, or stood, as was more fre- 
quently the case, spell-bound, and wondering. His manly 
language with the frequent glimpses of eloquence, his gentle 
kindness and his bright encouragement, appealed to their bet- 
ter nature ; and thousands after thousands of converts have 
been made to the cause of temperance. The happy ideas of 
giving Sunday morning breakfasts, and of finding clothing 
for those in want, and employment for those that could not 
procure work, did much to spread the cause, and bring peo- 
ple to the pledge-tables. Many poor wretches, friendless, 
homeless and moneyless were made glad by the fact that some 
one cared for them, and would help them if they would en- 
deavor to be good. They were willing and anxious to take 
the pledge ; for it promised them so bright a future, and 
saved them from the dark, awful, yawning abyss that stretched 
at their tottering feet. 

The statistics laid before us for inspection show the follow- 
ing goodly results : In fourteen days 1942 men were lodged; 
and 1920 fed. In three months over 50,000 persons signed the 
Murphy pledge. Naturally, among so vast a number of peo- 
ple, who pledged themselves to abstain from intoxicants, some 
fell, and some were out and out frauds. The former were too 
unstable to remain deaf to the alluring voice of the tempter, 
and fell, unable to bear up under the trying strain. These 
persons are more to be pitied then blamed. The "frauds" 
were, however, quickly detected, and received the deserts which 
they so richly deserved. One individual was sent to the peni- 
tentiary. Having obtained the position as usher at the Murphy 
meetings, he went for some time upon his nefarious way un- 
suspected. He was finally discovered to be a thief ; it was 
discovered that he was far gone in crime ; that he had stolen 
a gold watch from some one in the audience, and that he was 
an old and hardened criminal. He was convicted and sen- 
tenced. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 177 

There were also a class of persons who signed the pledge 
just for the purpose of bettering their condition, and making 
their lot in life somewhat easier. They came with a long, 
painful story of their want, their unhappy lives, and succeeded 
in getting in this way clothing, which was immediately taken 
off to some pawn-broker, and enough money obtained to secure 
a couple of glasses of drink. These characters have been de- 
tected ; but they form a very small part, indeed, of those that 
swell the temperance wave to such gigantic proportions. As 
a whole the movement has been what it was intended it should 
be — a pure, noble endeavor to reclaim men addicted to intoxi- 
cating liquors, and it has been singularly fortunate in being 
free of the manifold shams and frauds that crowd other move- 
ments, and eventually kill them by their baleful presence. Mr. 
Murphy himself claims that ninety per cent, of those persons 
who sign the pledge at his meetings, to use the lecturer's own 
expression, " stick." Some of the people who came to him 
during the great revival in temperance at Philadelphia were of 
the highest social standing in Pennsylvania, people of wealth, 
education, and intelligence of the most marked order. They 
had fallen into the common pitfall Satan has dug for his vic- 
tims, and were going down step by step to a dishonored grave, 
regardless of their position in the world, where they were 
lights and examples to the thousands beneath them. By the 
blessed power of Francis Murphy they were plucked like the 
"brand from the -burning" — saved to go forth like men, 
preaching to and saving others. 

The greatest number of Mr. Murphy's converts, however, 
spring from the humble walks in life. Men who are hardened 
by a life-long battle with grim poverty ; who have scarcely 
known what it is to have a real holiday ; whose clays seem but 
one continuous ditty of a monotonous character, without one 
redeeming or pleasing quality — these creatures were those that 
rallied around the temperance hero, and breathed new life, 
hope, faith, and joy under his genial smile. To these people 



178 THE TKTTE PATH ; 

he is as one sent to them by the Most High — he is truly a hero 
in every acceptation of the term. 

They have listened to him eagerly, and have followed out his 
wishes ; they have taken his pledge ; they have embraced re- 
ligion ; they have turned over a fresh leaf, and have led new 
lives ; they have been imbued with hope and faith in the 
hereafter ; they have become men, every one of them — true 
gentlemen, despite their rough ways, their hard lives, and their 
uncultured minds. Of such excellent material has this tem- 
perance reform been made, that through its truth and sincerity 
it will live forever. It was hard for many to believe the won- 
derful remarks and reports flying here, there, and everywhere, 
about Mr. Murphy and the good he was doing. It was hard 
to believe one man had the power to do so much good ; and 
then, too, to accomplish it all in such short time. Was it 
really so, or was it but a lot of exaggerated rubbish ? The 
unbelievers went to hear him to judge for themselves, and 
were convinced, before they returned to their homes, that all 
that was said of Francis Murphy and his work was the truth. 
And they, too, become believers, and sign his pledge. As it has 
been most aptly remarked by a noted Philadelphia newspaper : 

" The evils of intemperance are known to those whom he 
addresses. In almost every breast there lurks a deep desire to 
burst from the fetters w T ith which it has bound them ; to lead 
new lives, and become honored and respected in society. 
They well know the many sorrows and trials that a career of 
intemperance has brought upon them ; and hence it is when 
Mr. Murphy, in a persuasive and affectionate manner, points 
out to them the way of relief, and shows the error of their 
ways, they are at once convinced of his truthfulness. 

" He touches the latent desire for a reformation. By his 
eloquence he arouses a feeling of resolve ; and men are per- 
suaded to exercise and put into execution a will to do better. 
He shows that if we have not the will, so to do, we surely can- 
not avoid that temptation which brings contempt, disgrace 
and misery." 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 179 

"He deals in no invectives; wounds not the sensibilities 
(for these are possessed by all, in a greater or less degree) of 
the fallen ; but persuades and leads them to make an effort 
— for having once obtained their signature to the pledge, he 
knows one great point has been gained. This accomplished, ho 
encourages them to keep it ; and not by words alone, but by 
deeds. 

"A Divine Providence has indeed blessed Mr. Murphy's 
labors. He has been made the humble instrument of saving 
many souls and bringing them within the means of Grace. 

" To him, it is a labor of love. Night and day he pursues 
his self-imposed task, and with no other desire of reward than 
that of accomplishing grand results. That his very heart and 
soul are wrapped up in his cause, is evident from the fervent 
appeals made by him, at each and every meeting, with all the 
energy and fire of a true orator. 9 ' 

Throughout his labors he maintained one course in rela- 
tion to those parties engaged in the sale of liquors. He would 
not spend his valuable time and efforts in abusing them, nor 
would he become their defender or apologist. He saw from 
the outset of his crusade that there was no possibility whatever 
of anathematizing them out of their business ; and that it was 
most unwise to waste his labor in that direction. In this par- 
ticular he differed from the general temperance speakers and 
workers. All he asked was that all, drunkards, liquor-dealers, 
everybody in fact should come to him, and he would prove to 
them the right and the wrong of the thing. 

In his work he was nerved with the sense of the justice of 
the noble cause. He was wrapped up body and soul in one 
absorbing object — temperance. His truths have lighted up 
the dark places, and have shone like celestial torches. People 
have been drawn to the movement by his warm affection for 
it, by the conviction that God's hand was uppermost in the 
work done. Prejudices have been overthrown ; and he has 
gone forward, overcoming all hindrances of an unworthy 
nature by his truth, faith and earnestness, and making wonder- 



180 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ful success everywhere. His name alone is now enough to 
keep the movement alive ; for the thousands that have been 
saved by him rush to hear it, and send it up in prayer daily to 
the throne of God. He can never be forgotten, or regarded in 
a cold, indifferent manner by any who has heard him. He is 
loved by all ; and he will always be regarded as a grand 
crusader in the great cause of temperance. 

One of the most interesting features of the movement in 
Philadelphia was the plan of giving Sunday breakfasts. This 
was Mr. Murphy's plan, and it met with wonderful success. 
The following account of a newspaper reporter will be pe- 
rused with pleasure, as it gives so happy a description of this 
successful innovation in temperance reform : 

" The success of what may seriously be termed the provi- 
dential — it is certainly a ' happy idea ' of Mr. Murphy, the 
new apostle of temperance, to appeal to the conscience of the 
inebriate under the influence of a full stomach — was plainly 
manifested yesterday morning at the free Sabbath breakfast 
given under the auspices of the National Christian Temper- 
ance Union, in the annex building of the Academy of Fine 
Arts. 

"By actual count the breakfast was partaken of by five 
hundred and forty-three men, twenty or more women, several 
children, and a couple of babies ; the latter, although small in 
numbers and in their mothers' laps, being the most demonstra- 
tive in the expression of the gratitude which was pictured on 
each and every countenance, without regard to sex, nativity, 
color, ' or previous condition of servitude ' to rum. 

" The occasion yesterday was increased in interest from the 
fact that the man who, seven years ago, had rescued Mr. 
Murphy from prison and shame, and thus restored him to his 
manhood, was present on the platform, sitting beside the 
man he had restored to society, and subsequently briefly 
addressing the assemblage. 

" ' I toll you, I'd rather starve than go and be fed like a 
pauper/ was the remark that fell on the ear as he passed a 



OH, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 181 

group of seedily-dressed men standing at the corner of Broad 
and Race streets shortly before eight o'clock yesterday morn- 
ing. The clouds were gathering and a rain was threatening 
at every moment. 

"I know how it will be ; we will all be gathered like dogs, 
or rather hogs, up to a narrow table, and a hundred or more 
more of us, blacks and whites, will be tusseling with each 
other after a plate of weak soup ; and then we'll have to hal- 
loo out psalms and get down on our marrow bones for an hour 
or two, and then listen till twelve o'clock all about how wicked 
we are and all that, as if we didn't know it already. No ; I 
say, boys, I think I can get that fellow over at the corner 
where we spent our money last night to c hang us up ' for a 
round of beer, and he'll have a bully lunch — a whole lot of 
sausage, fixings, and black bread, besides tiptop soup at ten 
o'clock, and we can sit down and enjoy it ; what do you say? 
Let's go over and see whether the landlord is up yet. 

" Just as a decisive vote was taken by an advance movement 
toward the beer shop, the spokesman who led the way was 
stopped suddenly by a young lady, plainly but neatly dressed, 
and wearing a countenance expressive of pure benevolence. 
The innate nature of the man made him gentle enough to 
accept a printed card which she had politely extended to him ; 
and the others followed his example with a c Thank you, 
miss ! ' 

" ' Why, it's not a tract,' exclaimed the spokesman, in aston- 
ishment, after the young lady had passed on. ' By Jove, if it 
ain't a polite invitation for us to go and take breakfast with 
Murphy.' 

" ' Well, now, that's another kink. Murphy, I understood, 
says he was once as ' hard up ' and as ' down in the heels ' as 
we are. We are his peers! and as Mr. Murphy is so polite as 
to extend us an invitation in his formal way, why we can't do 
anything else but to accept it, or send him a letter of regret.' 

" And the speaker and his companions laughed a very hun- 
gry laugh, as he gave the order, < Right about face, boys ! I 



182 THE TEUE PATH ; 

have known in my time what polite society requires. Murphy 
is a brick, and we mustn't go back on him.' 

"And the reporter followed the party into the breakfast 
room. The aroma of coffee that met the nostrils as one entered 
the door made the appetite keen. A number of well-dressed 
young men were quietly but swiftly passing around among 
five hundred or more of shabbily-dressed men and women, 
politely filling the neat cups of queensware which each of the 
latter held in their hands. 

" Then followed another company of young men with trays 
heaped with the most appetizing sandwiches — not the sawdust 
sandwiches the traveller has to put up with at the railroad 
stations, but sandwiches that ' melted in the mouth,' as it were, 
and made the eater an Oliver Twist, wanting ' more.' 

" The reporter couldn't stand the temptation, and, although 
he had not received any formal invitation from Mr. Murphy, 
he went in and 'joined in the crowd,' and the thought of 
( what a good provider Mr. Murphy must be' had hardly re- 
volved itself in the minds of his guests, as they were laying aside 
their cups and wiping their mouths, when the coffee and sand- 
wich companies of young men came among them again — this 
time not only filling the cups, but inviting each and every 
guest to take a couple of sandwiches this time, or more if he 
felt he could c go it/ 

" And all this time a choir of young ladies were singing the 
beautiful hymns, c What a friend a we have in Jesus,' and the 
like. So that after all had eaten, and Rev. Dr. Saul, of the 
Episcopal Church, had read the ' lesson of the day ' from St. 
Matthew, ' No man can serve two masters,' and Rev. Dr. 
Kynett had delivered an impressive prayer of thanks, the con- 
gregation got quite sociable and became like members of one 
family, saying, 'Ain't this jolly,' to each other. 

" And then some of the men began to adjust their hair a 
little neatly, brushing down the stray locks, etc., and the 
women 'spruced up' their bonnets or head gearing and spread 
out their dresses in a way to hide any holes or patches. 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 183 

"It was noticeable that the large. majority of the men had 
clean faces, although their countenances in many cases may 
have been a little weather-beaten. 

" The dropping of a pin might have been heard when Mrs. 
Lincoln sang the beautiful hymn, 'What shall the harvest 
be?' The entire congregation joined in the chorus in voices, 
which although coarse, gave evidence of devotion. In the 
meantime, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Stewart, Rev. Dr. Westwood, 
Rev. Dr. Curry, and others went among the people, shaking 
hands, congratulating those who had already signed and kept 
the pledge, and cheering others who ha/1 not yet, but contem- 
plated doing so ; while a kindly-looking, white-haired physi- 
cian went among the mothers giving them advice as to the ail- 
ings'of their children and babies. One little youngster felt so 
contented that he tried playing hide-and-seek under the re- 
porters' tables, which are located directly in front of the plat- 
form. 

" Everybody seemed to feel at home and happy ; and as 
Mr. Murphy walked down the aisle arm-in-arm with the well- 
known journalist familiarly called ' Deacon Jones' — his latest 
convert of prominence — the people began to applaud ; but this 
was speedily checked when Mr. Bailey reminded them of the 
day." 

This movement was not generally considered a struggle in 
which, by kind words and gentle acts, men were carefully 
guided . away from the abyss upon whose brink they stood, 
ready to topple over any minute. It was considered by a 
great many as a direct fight with King Alcohol ; that men 
who fell at this despot's feet in cringing homage had long been 
contemplating it; and that they were only waiting for one 
to take the high place of leader at the head of their ranks. 

The country was ready for the crusade, as drunkenness 
was frowned upon by society and considered disgraceful as 
well as criminal ; and the very ones addicted to this awful 
indulgence were only awaiting a good and fitting opportunity 
to fight their way back to honorable, sober and worthy lives. 



184 THE TBUE PATH ; 

Great movements are, as a rule, created and conducted by a 
master mind. God prepares the minds and hearts of the peo- 
ple for it ; the very air seems to breathe what is to take place. 
All that is required to start the movement, and to arouse the 
people, is an instrument of his power. Through the humblest 
means he works miracles. In this great moment Francis 
Murphy was chosen and saved, so that he might go and oc- 
cupy the position selected for him, and for him alone. And, 
realizing some mysterious and all-powerful agency, he accepted 
what seemed the only thing for him to do, and nobly went 
forth to battle against intemperance. Wherever he went, and 
whenever he spoke the power of God seemed to be with him, 
crowning his every effort with wonderful success. Indeed he 
seemed inspired. His eloquence aroused his hearers into 
great and positive enthusiasm, and he swayed them at his will. 
What he did at one point would electrify and start another 
into a perfect blaze of earnest effort and warm enthusiasm. 

In some places, and even small cities, one-half of the popu- 
lation have signed the pledge, and become Murphy men. In 
some the whole place has been captured, and not a drop of 
liquor has been sold there. In others, every tavern and every 
saloon were obliged to close their doors, and the alcoholic liquors 
have been, by the proprietors, emptied into the streets to min- 
gle with the dirt, amidst the wildest excitement and delight 
of the people devoted to the noble cause of total abstinence, 
"Where this movement will end it is utterly impossible to say ; 
and the results that spring from it cannot be estimated. The 
country has embraced the cause with a fervor that amazes all; 
but amazement gives place to conviction when the unbelievers 
are brought within the influence of the hero of it, and his 
many zealous and powerful co-workers. Their earnestness, truth 
and steadfastness carries everything before them. 

On the evening of May 25, 1811, a mass meeting of 
churches was held in the Tabernacle M. E. Church on Eleventh 
street, Philadelphia, to support the Mayor of Philadelphia in 
his efforts to close the drinking saloons on Sunday. There 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 185 

was an immense audience present, for the subject had been 
discussed in every phase, and the demand of the people for 
some definite action in the matter was no longer to be left 
unheeded by those parties in public offices. Many distin- 
guished gentlemen were present, and some remarkably fine 
addresses were delivered. In the earlier part of the evening 
Mr. Murphy was introduced, and received a thundering recep- 
tion. For some seconds he was kept bowing to the very hearty 
applause, which he did in his affable fashion, so dear to the 
thousands who know him. His speech, which we give, was 
received with expressions, on all sides, of genuine delight and 
interest. Pie said : 

" I am very glad to come here for a few moments before 
going to the Annex. I am glad to know that God's people 
are going to take hold of this work. I believe that everything 
that will make men true and grand will be found in the Church 
of Christ. If political meetings were held in churches instead 
of in rum shops we would have a better government. My 
faith is in the means now being employed in emancipating all 
of us from the curse of drunkenness. The Sons of Temper- 
ance and Good Templars have done valiant work ; but the 
trouble is, there has not been enough. We hardly ever hear 
of a man being converted in a Good Templar lodge. The 
mistake is not with the young men ; it is with ourselves to-day. 
It is the duty of every man to so present the truth of God 
that they become interested in it. Before I leave the city I 
want to get the autograph of every one who .has signed my 
pledge, and find out what church he would like to attend. It 
is a blessed thing we have a temperance movement now that 
is non-political. It must be kept from politics and sectarian- 
ism. I was not compelled to give up tobacco in consequence 
of any brow-beating ; but I made up my mind to leave it off. 
I would say to the young men who are not smoking men, don't 
do it, as it is a dreadfully unpleasant habit to cultivate. A 
great many people believed that I would not keep my pledge 
not to drink, and would go to selling liquor again • but they 



186 THE TRUE PATH ; 

did not know my heart. Instead * of closing the saloons one 
day let us close them every day in the week, and keep them 
closed. 

"Do not let us be discouraged. Let us put on the whole 
armor of God. Let us stand foot to foot until the last saloon 
is closed, and the fire put out of the last distillery. I hope 
the rum-shops will be hermetically sealed on Sunday and 
closed throughout the week." 



111. 



lim 



mm* 






\ 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 189 



CHAPTER XVI. 

HOW TUE WORK PROCEEDED IN THE CITY OP BROTHERLY 
LOVE. — CO-OPERATION OF THE LADIES AND THE CHURCHES. 
ANECDOTES, ADDRESSES, AND PERSONAL INCIDENTS. 

A yery interesting feature of the Philadelphia movement 
was the children's meetings. These were largely attended, 
and the brave little people succeeded in doing a great deal of 
good. They signed the pledge, and got a number to sign also. 
Here we see a charming illustration of future excellency and 
•honor — little children going forward, and taking a pledge that 
is as binding as any other oath registered before God or man, 
promising to avoid all intoxicants as a beverage for the time 
being and to come. Here we kill the awful evil before it is 
born, and lay a foundation for glorious manhood. Mr. Mur- 
phy was always seen at his best at these meetings. A father 
himself, and passionately fond of children, he knew exactly 
how to address them, and make an impression. His addresses 
to them were master-pieces of simplicity and charming rhet- 
oric ; and he enjoyed being with them as much as they did 
with him. On one occasion — Saturday afternoon, April 14th, 
— Concert Hall was jammed with the little people of all 
classes, from the fine miss from an Arch street mansion to the 
ragged bootblack. Mr. Murphy was unusually felicitous in 
his remarks, and three hundred children went up to the pledge 
tables. Those who w T ere present will always remember the 
tendei look of the famous orator, his affectionate greeting to 
each signer, as one by one they came up, and the way he 
kissed a happy little one now and then, in his delight and 
supreme satisfaction. 



190 THE TKTTE PATH ; 

The cause was very much strengthened by the hearty co- 
operation of the ladies of Philadelphia. These noble women 
were active and zealous, and did more good than mere words 
can express. They were anxious and ready to extend to all 
in need and suffering a kind, helping hand ; and many a de? 
spairing one, close upon the gloomy region of the valley of 
death, was saved by them. They recognized that something 
else besides preaching and praying was required to fully 
establish temperance, and went quietly and steadily to carry 
out their plans in an orderly and systematic manner. The 
hungry required food, and those in rags needed decent rai- 
ment. These demands were quickly gratified. The ladies 
organized society after society in the various churches ; and 
soon they were engaged as busily and as steadfastly in the 
movement as any other body connected with it. At the close 
of the noonday prayer-meetings, when so very many had been 
saved from the delusive snares of intemperance, tables laden 
with good substantial food stood free and ready for the hun- 
gry. How glad it made the hearts of the poor, unfortunate 
beings ! And how eagerly they enjoyed the bounteous repast ! 

The ladies, at whose head was Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, a 
lady well known throughout the country as a true Christian, 
and a successful writer and publisher of several Christian 
journals, held meetings for several weeks in the lecture room 
of the Central Coffee House. This building could not accom- 
modate the dense crowds that thronged to the meetings ; and 
consequently they moved to the Mission building of the West 
Arch Street Presbyterian Church, the use of which was tend- 
ered them free of all expense. Here they labored, holding 
their prayer-meetings, and supplying the hungry with food 
and the ragged with clothes, with wonderful ability, and suc- 
ceeded until, it also becoming of too limited a capacity for 
their visitors, they rented the hall and rooms at 1635 Market 
street. It would be utterly out of the question to give an accu- 
rate statistical account of the good these noble women did in the 
cause ; for there was no time for them to make reports, their 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 191 

efforts and their work being absorbed by Francis Murphy's 
labor at the time. They cast in their labors, asking no recog- 
nition for their woman's work. They were willing to push 
the movement on without their names being brought before 
the public in any way ; and nobly did they push it, doing 
good in a thousand ways as only true, pure Christian women 
know how. A lodging-house for the homeless was provided 
by these ladies a few doors below No. 1635. This building 
was neatly and comfortably fitted up ; and was a perfect God- 
send to the poor wanderers of humanity. Here they could rest 
their weary limbs, and enjoy the quiet and sweet repose under 
a most hospitable roof, and be cared for by noble, loving women. 

In pursuing the history of the salient facts of the Mur- 
phy movement, our readers will already have seen the dif- 
ficulty of pursuing the consecutively narrative form, or being 
strictly faithful to chronological order. The facts repeated 
themselves under new phases at each place visited by Mr. Mur- 
phy, the meetings were conducted on the same principles, and 
of course there was a certain monotony in the general features 
of Murphy's efforts, though there was never-failing and intense 
interest, no matter how long the revival season might be. 
Still there were certain characteristics peculiar to each place, 
that were reproduced in the external embodiment of the cause 
and the efforts used to push it. After all no more vivid and 
truthful clues can be given to the real marrow and signifi- 
cance of the Murphy movement than in personal traits, 
incidents, and addresses. So before completing a general sum- 
mary and weighing the aggregate results of the great temper- 
ance advocate's efforts at Philadelphia, our readers will be 
interested in a series of sketches and anecdotes, as well as ex- 
tracts from speeches. These we shall offer without direct 
reference to the time of happening, as they are all interesting* 
illustrations, which might have happened at any period of the 
Quaker City revival. 

Francis Murphy and Mr. J. L. Bailey, were, on one occasion, 
walking to the hall where the meetings were held. They were 



192 THE TRUE PATH ; 

about passing the doors of a saloon when Mr. Murphy turned 
abruptly, and said quickly, " Let us go in here." • They walked 
into the saloon, and up to the bar, in front of which stood 
three fine-looking young men each having a tumbler contain- 
ing liquor before him. The entrance of the two strange gen- 
tlemen suspended the drinking just as it was about to begin. 
Mr. Murphy stepped up to the bar-tender and grasping his 
hand, said, " How are you, sir ? God bless you !" He turned 
to the young men, and shook hands with each of them, giving 
each in turn his blessing, and then said, pointing to the glasses, 
"Brothers, I wouldn't drink that. I wish you would come 
with me to our meeting." He made himself known to the men, 
and, after some kindly remarks to the bar tender, left the place 
followed by the three young men, who left the liquor they had 
paid for untouched on the bar. 

W. It, Bucknell said in the Tabernacle that he had arrived 
at that despairing point in life when hope seemed a mere myth, 
and thought himself lost to all things honorable and correct, 
until God in his infinite mercy saw fit to bring him back. He 
felt certain that, if he could be saved, there was not a single 
person in the building that could not be. He earnestly be- 
sought moderate drinkers to abstain altogether from intoxi- 
cants, and to sign the pledge. They could at least do great 
good by praying for their friends ; God was a true hearer and 
answerer of prayers. 

Mr. Warden gave a most interesting account of an acquaint- 
ance of his, who had come from Pittsburg to Philadelphia 
during the proceedings of the temperance movement, and who 
had been urged again and again to sign the pledge. He posi- 
tively refused to do so, saying that, although he did drink and 
sometimes drank more than he should, he could abstain when 
he pleased, and did not need the restraints of a pledge to keep 
him from going wrong. When, however, he had yielded to 
the urgency of his friends, and had attended one or two meet- 
ings he made up his mind to sign the pledge. Going back to 
Pittsburgh he was not satisfied to remain idle, so exerted 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 193 

himself to save others, and was now doing a good work 
there. 

Mr. Emory said felicitously, before an immense audience, 
that he had turned away from his former habits only fourteen 
days ago. He had sunk to a lamentable depth of degradation, 
after being a good member of the church and a Sunday-school 
teacher. He expected to encounter temptations ; but with 
God's help, meant to steer clear of them. He entreated all 
present to pray for him. 

A son from green Erin was, on one occasion, brought for- 
ward with some difficulty, and urged to tell his experience to 
the listening crowd. He was received with applause, and he 
quaintly said : " Ladies and gentlemen---I have been a very 
bad man, and have been in the habit of drinking for many 
years ; but I signed the pledge yesterday, and I tell you all 
that I mean to keep it." 

Professor Kelley, of Pittsburgh, was introduced at one of 
the meetings, and said that he felt a stronger and much better 
man than he was two weeks ago, and God helping and giving 
him strength, he was determined to stand by the noble cause 
of total abstinence. On his return to Pittsburgh, he would 
tell the good news from Philadelphia. He looked forward to 
the glorious time when the banner of temperance would wave 
from Maine to Georgia, and from the Atlantic ocean to. the 
Pacific. 

Captain Saunders made the following neat little speech at 
one of the meetings : " I was induced to join the temperance 
society the other day, not because I was a drunkard, but 
because I was one of the moderate drinkers. Before another 
glass of beer or whiskey passes down my throat, it must be 
when I am dead ; but never while I am alive. I have seen 
many a man fall from aloft and overboard from the effects' of 
liquor, For the last three days I have not been suffering from 
dyspepsia, and I account for it by my abstaining. When Mr. 
Murphy goes from us I want this noble work to go on. I 
expect to live fifty years longer, God willing, and then I will 



194 THE TRUE PA'JH ; 

be only as old as my father was, who died at the good old age 

of one hundred and four. 

John Myers said he was reformed, and that he felt stronger 
every day. The day after he took the pledge, a German 
asked him to take a drink with him, but he answered that he 
drank nothing now but Murphy punches. He said, in Phila- 
delphia there were many men, and women too, who sent their 
children into beer saloons for drink, and that this eventually 
proved their ruin. 

Samuel P. Godwin said in an address at one of the Murphy 
meetings, that while the Board of Managers of the Franklin 
Reformatory Home were in session, a young man, whom he 
knew ten or twelve years ago to be living in opulence, came to 
them saying he had no home, no friends, no money, and look- 
ing fully sixty years of age. Drunkenness had brought him to 
this condition. He signed the pledge ; and was now working 
his way up in the world again. 

Samuel McClary made a most telling speech, in which he 
said : " I am an ex-convict. I am not ashamed to confess it 
now that I have reformed. My love of liquor brought me to 
jail, and completely wrecked my life. I could not abstain ; 
but now I have signed Mr. Murphy's pledge, and I shall keep 
it, God helping me ! " 

David Warburton, a middle-aged man, said he had been 
constantly intoxicated for the last twenty-five years, and had 
been reduced to so low a grade of society that he considered 
himself a shame and a disgrace. He informed the audience 
that he was a poet by nature, and proceeded to recite some 
verses, which he had composed the night previous, and which 
he had committed to memory. 

Mr. McLean said : " I have been a drinking man since my 
fourteenth year, and I was a very hard case. I am only four 
weeks old to-day ; but I feel a great deal better since I signed 
the pledge." 

William G. McMullen, an attorney at law, said, before a 
large audience : " Mr. Murphy asked me yesterday, ' Can I 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 195 

depend on your word, brother ?' and I must say I have indeed 
kept my pledge. I hope that, with the help of God, having 
written my name to the- pledge, I will remain true to it. I 
would say to others, come and do as I have done — come 
straight forward, and then you will have the eyes of the people 
upon you, and when they meet you afterward they will know 
if you have kept the pledge." 

Charles Haigh, formerly a liquor dealer/ said he had read 
the report of one of Francis Murphy's addresses in Concert 
Hall in the " Times," and feeling convinced, he concluded to 
quit the business. As long as God spared his life he would 
lift his voice in favor of temperance, and do all in his power 
to help others to sign the pledge, and further the cause. 

George F. B. Collins, attorney at law, said he spoke to mod- 
erate drinkers when he begged persons to come forward and 
sign the pledge. He said his analysis of a glass of whisky 
consisted of crutches, scaffolds, law-suits, divorces, imitations 
of prisons, assaults, and general degradation. The only way 
to save yourself from these is to abstain now and forever. In 
a glass of whisky or any other intoxicating drink he could see 
no faith, hope or charity. 

Brother Gore said he had been a man only two weeks. 
Previous to that time he had been worse than a brute ; for a 
brute would not haye drunk whisky as he had done. He was 
formerly a liquor-dealer. God had. now given him a new 
heart, pure and manly, and he was exceedingly glad, and 
meant to try and retain it. 

E. G. Evans said he was just thirteen days old. In his 
opinion open confession was good for the soul ; and therefore 
he would confess everything. Fifteen months ago his wife 
gave birth to twins. He and she were perfectly delighted 
with them. When they were two weeks old he felt very 
happy. The devil put it into his head to take a walk one 
afternoon. He did so, got into a saloon, took a drink, and 
kept drinking until thirteen days ago. He had now signed 



196 THE TKUE PATH; 

the pledge, and his wife and twins were very glad over it. 
He meant 'to keep it. 

Thomas Falladay, a sea-faring man, spoke as follows at a 
Murphy meeting : "X joined the temperance society in 1864. 
I have seen the time when I used to lie down in the ditches of 
France and Italy, so drunk was I ; and if there are any sailors 
here to-night, I hope they will come forward and sign the 
pledge. I mean to keep the pledge." 

One of Mr. Murphy's converts, on being brought forward 
and introduced by the great temperance apostle, said : " I 
was sick all over, from top to bottom, from tooth to toe-nail, 
when I first " quit ; " but now I am all right. I have been a 
bad man ; a hard drinker. I signed the pledge only nine days 
ago. I intend to keep it as long as I live." 

Joseph J ames addressed Mr. Murphy in the following man- 
ner before a large audience : " Francis Murphy, it is certainly 
embarrassing for me to get up before this vast audience ; but 
I see by the fire in your eye, that you won't take " no*" for an 
answer. Therefore, I wish to say, Francis Murphy, that two 
days ago, I would have sold my soul for a glass of beer ; and 
I wish to say, Francis Murphy, that to-day I would rather die 
than touch it." 

George W. Southworth confessed that he had been a mod- 
erate drinker. He had often resolved to cease drinking ; but 
his appetite was far stronger than his mental promises. Finally 
he managed to sign the Murphy pledge, and was now a better 
and happier man. 

J. C. Love, a gentleman who became identified with the 
Murphy work, and who is now working away with a will in it; 
said to a large meeting that his signature to the pledge looked 
like a Chinaman's mark, and Mr. Murphy had to hold him up 
when he spoke. Slowly but surely strength, both of body and 
mind, came back to him. He left his business for six weeks 
entirely to take care of itself, and commenced to work for 
the cause. He had been one of the worst drunkards on record, 
always full and always wanting more ; but now he had con- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 197 

quered the terrible appetite, and would never be under its in- 
fluence again as long as he lived. The pledge saved him. 

John Andrews said he was three weeks old. He was born 
at the Central Coffee House, where he had given his heart to 
God, and had reformed. The desire for intoxicants had made 
him very miserable, and had ruined his prospects in life more 
than once. Through Mr. Murphy's cheering words of future 
happiness he had seen his errors, and had signed the pledge. 
Things looked clearer and brighter already. 

Thomas Halliday, a sailor, blessed God that now he could 
pat on a good pair of trousers and a decent coat, and have 
one dollar in his pocket. Signing the pledge and abstaining 
gave him these. 

John Columny said he had stood a<t the bar fifteen years 

Jonopolizing drinking altogether. He was now on another 
ack, a sure and straight road to happiness and prosperity — 
fcal abstinence. He had signed the pledge, and his boys 
would now have an example. If the fathers patronize the 
saloons is it to be much wondered at that the children come 
home drunk ? Would to God ail fathers would sign the pledge* 
as he had done ! 

" I have heard," said a reformed man at one of the Murphy 
meetings, " chemists describe all that they could see in a drop 
of water. Shall I tell you what I see in a glass of whisky ? 
I see a rip in the coat way up behind ; I see pants a foot too 
short for a man ; I see torn shoes that won't cover a man's 
toes ; I see red eyes and black eyes, and I see shin plasters 
that won't pay for a man's dinner. 

" There are some men with brass enough to make a preserv- 
ing kettle, but when a fellow like some of these who've always 
needed an oyster knife to pry their mouths open will stand up 
and tell how they are saved by the grace of God, it makes a 
corner in the liquor trade, I can tell you. 

" One reason why the devil tempts men to drink is because 
since he was kicked out of a better place he wants company 
where he is. 



198 THE TEUE PATH 



" I'm just forty-eight hours old and I am too nervous to stand 
up very straight, but that's my first speech." 

Mr. Samuel MeLain's testimony at the Philadelphia Taber- 
nacle, before a large audience was this : " I am a reformed 
man, and I intend to remain that. I have known times when 
I would actually sell the clothes I wore for whisky. I have 
known what it is to be despised by Christian parents. I have 
known what it is to be homeless. I have known what it is to 
be in the penitentiary. I have signed the pledge. Before 
that I had nothing, and now see the change. I have respect- 
able friends and comfortable clothes. God be praised for the 
change in me. The money brokers will no longer get my 
clothes ; the liquor-dealers my money, my honor, my soul." 

John Carrigan admitted with contrite heart at a gathering 
in the good old Quaker Town that he had been a mere pro- 
fessional pledge-taker. His pledges lasted a day, and he had 
taken enough to fill an immense trunk. He was all right now 
— the light of truth having lighted up the chambers of his 
heart and soul, completely scaring from thence the dark, grim 
shadows of sin. 

The very first signers of the pledge at the Temperance 
Tabernacle, Philadelphia, were two men, rather the worse for 
liquor. While the inspiring exercises were being conducted 
they came up to the table, swaying somewhat wildly to and 
fro. "I'm drunk now," said one of them, managing in some 
way to write his name, " but it's the last time. I'm going to 
sign. Will ye sign too, Charley, me boy ?" " Yes." " Thin 
shake hands," and they shook hands as well as they could in 
their present state, after which they urged the ushers at the 
table to shake hands also, and witness their good action. 

Mr. J. A. South wick, a merchant of some prominence in 
Philadelphia, said before an immense audience in the Taber- 
nacle : "I signed the pledge on Easter Sunday night, and it 
was the gladdest day of the whole year to me, and will be that 
forever. I gave my soul then to Chirst. I have been a drink- 
ing man for years. More than once I have been prostrated by 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 199 

serious illness ; but recovered only to return to drinking. To 
save myself I joined a temperance society ; but I could not 
resist the tempter. I see now why I could not abstain — I did 
not pray to Him to be helped. I have signed the pledge, and 
mean to keep it, by praying to Jesus, and by His kind assist- 
ance. 

Dr. J. S. Cram spoke as follows, at a Murphy meeting in 
Philadelphia : "lam glad to be here. I am attracted hither 
in spite of myself. I heard Mr. Murphy speak in Pittsburgh 
six months ago, but I did not believe in him ; he seemed a 
fanatic to me. I was induced to append my name to the 
pledge in Concert Hall by my wife, who had done so. Six 
weeks ago I went to our beloved Savior, and now I am 
happier than I have ever been in my whole life. I thank Him 
for that undertow of temperance which bore me along until I 
was landed safely at His feet." 

Francis Murphy is a true lover of nature. He is very fond 
of flowers, and is partial to a sweet button-hole bouquet. In 
many instances these lovely children of mother earth have 
been the means of saving men. At the Philadelphia Taber- 
nacle, one night in May, a man by the name of McMullan, 
who had just signed the pledge, confessed that a flower had 
brought him to do it. He had presented it to Mr. Murphy, 
who entreated him to visit the Tabernacle in the evening. 
He promised to come. He went, and saved himself from sin. 

William J. Jones, better known as "Deacon Jones," had 
been for many years a very successful representative of the 
press. His position in the world of letters was honorable and 
high ; but a desire for strong drink hurled him from it. He 
became a drunkard. While reeling through the streets one 
day, Mr. Murphy came across him. The great temperance 
orator paused, took his fresh nosegay from his button-hole, 
and pinned it on the " Deacon's " breast. When he recovered, 
the flowers aroused the sleeping conscience, and stirred his 
degenerate manhood. That evening he signed the pledge, 
and redeemed thereby his claim to the noble title of man. 



200 THE TliUE PATH ; 

Mr. Charles Wenzell, the reformed sporting man, related a 
curious incident that came to his knowledge. A man, on his 
return home, after a " jolly good time," -generally, wanted 
something to eat. He discovered a bowl of milk, into which 
a ball of thread had dropped, and a bit of bread. He dis- 
patched the milk, thread and bread. The thread caught in 
his teeth, and he began to pull it out. He became alarmed at 
seeing no end, and called his wife. " I'm unraveling !" he 
cried, anxiously. " Boys," said Mr. Wenzell, " we want you 
too to unravel — unravel the chain of sin." 

John L. Linton was one of the noblest instances of faithful- 
ness and devotion in the Murphy movement. He had a com- 
fortable home on the banks of the Delaware, containing an 
extensive wine-cellar. "It w T as the wine-cellar that caused the 
loss of the entire home, and the temporary ruin of its builder 
and owner," Mr. Linton confessed. He embraced temperance, 
and did much good in the movement ; and is now working for 
it in Philadelphia with considerable success. 

John Tennyson delivered the following address at a Murphy 
meeting in the Tabernacle : 

" If I were to take the time to tell you all the benefits I 
have received from signing the pledge, you would have to 
' amen ' me down like Brother Murphy. I am doing well, 
better than I ever did before. I have been lifted from the 
depths of a life of degradation into a better life. A few weeks 
ago I was discarded from a home of luxury and ease to that 
of woe and w^ant. Nine weeks ago last Saturday night, I 
entered Concert Hall in a semi-intoxicated condition. I took 
a seat in the remotest corner of the hall where I might hide 
my tattered garments from the rude gaze of the people, and 
you may know how much interest I felt in the meeting when 
I tell you I fell asleep, and was not awakened until Mr. Mur- 
phy was making his closing speech. The next day at noon I 
signed the pledge, and have not since regretted that step. 

" So^n after the war I became intimately acquainted with a 
young man, whose life in this world bade fair to lead him on 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 201 

to fortune. His was a jovial disposition, frank and open- 
hearted, and it was his wont to meet with convivial friends 
on a set night and make a time of it. One cold winter morn- 
ing in the year 1868, after indulging more than usual, that 
morning he proceeded to his work, which consisted in putting 
a tin roof upon a building. He had been there only a few 
hours, when making a mis-step he fell backward through the 
skylight, a distance of forty feet, and was picked up in a life- 
less condition. An eminent physician was sent for, who said : 
' I cannot add tortures to his miseries ; he cannot live. 9 He 
was taken to the Pennsylvania Hospital, his relatives were 
sent for, and the first at his bedside was his mother. As she 
bended her slender form over the bed of that oldest son, with 
an agonized eye she looked into the eyes of the physician, 
saying, ' Oh, sir ! can he live ? Can my boy live ?' She did 
not v»rant him to be sent to a drunkard's grave. The physician 
replied : ' We cannot tell, his life is in a higher power than 
ours. 5 All through that dreary winter she carried him nour- 
ishment and consolation. He was removed to her home only 
to rise from that bed a cripple for life. It is unnecessary for 
me to tell you that that man and myself are the same person. 
I hate the vile groggery ; it has robbed me of the use of a 
good right arm, it has invaded our social and family circles 
and removed our best friends. Oh, men, arise and assert your 
liberty by enrolling your name on the roll of honor. Oh, men! 
why bow ye down to images of stone ! ISTow, rise ! be free ! 
trust in the God above, for with him is mercy and goodness. 
Come forward, then, to-night, and sign the pledge. Take the 
advice of one who has known the miseries which result from 
the use of intoxicating drink, and who is now free from it and 
enjoying a life of temperance." 

The following words were uttered by Mr. Frank Burns, of 
Pittsburgh, at the Murphy Tabernacle, in Philadelphia: 

"I am amazed at the immense size of this building, which I 
expected so little to see. I came here to-(iay to see Mr. 
Murphy, because I have been so weary with the work in Pitts- 



202 THE TRUE PATH ; 

burg that I wished a little rest ; and, I thought I would get a 
little rest by coming to see him, as he has been a friend to me. 
As I was sitting here to-night my thoughts went back to a little 
over five years ago, when I was in your city, about to leave it 
for Pittsburgh, accompanying my father's body home. He 
died, while on a visit here, of pneumonia, after five days' ill- 
ness. I was at that time attending Jefferson Medical College. 
When he died I became heir to a fortune of over $80,000. As 
I was his only child, and as my mother had died four years 
previously, I did not have the right people to counsel me. I 
spent a portion of my time in this city. I then went into the 
liquor business in New York. I next went down to Pittsburgh 
and got married, and made a wedding tour to Europe, through 
Ireland and England. I assure you Irish whisky did not im- 
prove matters with me. I returned, and, to make a long story 
short, I gradually went on till I got from the top of the ladder 
to the foot almost. Thank God, to-night I am saved ; but I 
might have been saved sooner. About four months ago I had 
a drinking spree of about five days. I had not heard of Mr. 
Murphy being in Pittsburgh, but one morning I met brother 
David Hall, who asked me to come and hear Murphy. I said: 
6 All right.' I didn't know where Murphy was. I thought it 
was some new saloon. I said : ' Yes, I would as soon drink 
Murphy's whisky as anybody else's.' So he took me up to 
the University and we saw Murphy. It was not the Murphy 
I expected to see. I signed the pledge. I have been saved 
through the instrumentality of Mr. Murphy, by the grace of 
God, from a drunkard's grave. I did not come here to praise 
him. But I know the good he has done me, and I know what 
he has done for Pittsburgh." 

Mr. John II. Love, of Philadelphia, said before a great 
Tabernacle meeting : 

u At the age of sixteen I had an iron constitution. For 
twenty-five years I was a moderate drinker. I could start on 
five glasses and keep on drinking and still remain pretty sober. 
The habit was increasing upon me year after year, and my 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 203 

appetite for drink got stronger and stronger, so that I could 
not do without it. The accursed stuff was dragging rne down 
into the lowest depths, and poisoning me. I had power over 
everything but that. Whisky had the mastery over me. 
Now, thank God, since I have signed the pledge, I am master ; 
and, by the help of God, I will be master. It is something 
noble for you, young men, to throw the cursed shackles from 
off your feet. There is not a man living but can stop drinking 
and be a man. This country is large. There is not a man 
in the country, Or city, but what there is employment for, if 
he will go about it in the right way. Some say : t There is no 
use in my signing it, I cannot keep it.' Whenever the tempta- 
tion comes to you, even if you have the whisky poured out, 
get on your knees first, and I will guarantee that the whisky 
is thrown on the floor, and you w T ill go off feeling a better 
man. I have had trials, but I can look back and say I am 
master now." 

The two following incidents were given by Mr. Murphy 
himself with great power and applause in his talks at the 
Tabernacle : 

"I was speaking upon the subject of temperance in New 
Brighton, Connecticut. After I got through, a ladjr came 
upon the platform, and taking me to one side, said : ' I wish 
you would please come to my home.' Well, I was delighted to 
hear the sweet, musical voice of my countrywoman, and I went 
home with her and her beautiful daughter Mary. She said, 
before we reached home, ' I wish you could see James, my 
husband.' 

" He had bought property in New Brighton and it had since 
increased very rapidly in value ; it had cost only two thousand 
dollars and it was now worth forty thousand. He w r as a 
moulder by trade, and came into wealth, and, being possessed 
of true Irish hospitality, he was always ready with a drop of 
the creature. Having arrived at his house, his wife called to 
him, c Come down, James O'Connor.' James came down, and 
I said : ' How are you ?' He looked kindly into my face and 



204 THE TRUE PATH ; 

said, ' I am all right.' I said, ' James, I am afraid you aro 
all wrong.' ' Never mind,' said he, ' just take a drop.' So he 
went to the pantry and brought out his bottle in grand style, 
' and now,' said he, ' give us a little boiling water and some 
sugar.' 'If you please,' said I, 'I cannot touch it.' 'Ah,' 
said he, ' you're the temperance man ?' ' Yes,' said I. We 
then talked and reasoned together. During this time, I 
noticed a little mark over the forehead of the mother, and she 
had a welt of her hair brought down to cover it. I said : 
' Mrs. O'Connor, what happened to your face V She said, 
'Don't say anything about that.' A countryman of mine sold 
her husband liquor ; there he spent his nights ; and that w r as 
the origin of the mark. I said to her : ' Will you tell me 
where this countryman lives ?' She told me, and I spoke to 
him about it. He was a true Irishman, and he loved the 
family, and he said : ' If it has made James O'Connor put that 
mark on his wife, never shall I again sell a drop of intoxicating 
liquor.' And he never did, and he has made a respectable 
living since he quit selling it. 

" A dear countryman came to America in search of a for- 
tune. He had a beautiful family, and was a stone mason by 
trade. He had brothers in the city of Portland who repre- 
sented a large amount of wealth, and he thought he would go 
into the liquor traffic. 

" My brother engaged in the business. He had a beautiful 
son whom he took in the business with him ; and he had two 
beautiful girls. He commenced in the liquor traffic and he 
made a large amount of money. When his son was twenty 
years of age he had twenty thousand dollars' worth of prop- 
erty. His son drank constantly and kept on drinking. Fin- 
ally, at the age of twenty-one, this boy, this darling of his life, 
was taken with the delirium tremens and died ; his father was 
at his side. His dear mother, who had been so proud of him^ 
worried and walked up and down her home until she sickened 
and died from a broken heart. I was personally acquainted 
with the father, I knew him to be a genuine, noble-hearted 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 205 

Christian man. But he commenced to drink, and to such an 
excess that his own 1 wo brothers had him arrested and carried 
to the county jail. 

" While he was incarcerated I made it my duty to visit him. 
I wish I had the power of a Dickens to describe the man. He 
was in one of those little dark cells, and had nothing on him 
but his pantaloons, his hair was standing up on his head, his 
hands and fingers looked like the claws of an eagle, they were 
so spare and thin. When he saw me he came to the door, and 
in his sweet, loving way he said, ' Ah, Mr. Murphy, that's you.' 
And the tears ran down his cheeks as he spoke of his darlkig 
boy. Poor Willie died, whipped into eternity with the scor- 
pions chasing him, whilst his father held him. 

" His sister was one of the finest girls in Portland, and she, 
poor Mary, took to drink, and died from the effects of intoxi- 
cating liquor. I have attended the funerals of the father, 
mother, son and daughter ; and I saw them placed side by 
side in the grave-yard. 

" There is no marble slab, to-day, to tell of the last resting 
place of this mother and her children, but if the truth could be 
written over their graves, it would be said, c Rum killed them.' " 

The following clipping from the Philadelphia Daily Ex- 
press, proving the unselfishness and extensiveness of Francis 
Murphy's work, will be perused with interest : 

" Midnight witnessed an impressive scene. Frank Murphy, 
escorted by Sergeant Pearson and a couple of police officers, 
and accompanied by a full delegation of newspaper men, was 
standing in the garret of the tenement house on Ramcat alley 
and St. Mary street. Lying on the floor (some in a nude con- 
dition) and standing around him were colored and white women. 
Some of the latter hid their faces in their hands, while others 
welcomed the visitors. 

" ' I am married, and my name is Mrs. Annie Howard,' said 
a fair-haired woman, with a soft voice. ' I have seen better 
days, and I still trust in the Almighty. I love my husband, 
and he is good to me.' 



206 THE TRUE PATH ; 

u Some of the rooms were even wretched, and the inmates 
sullen and constrained, while in others Mr. Murphy was greeted 
with great cordiality. 

"The 'bosses' of the rooms paid a rental of $4.50 to $7 per 
month. They sub-let them to several families. Some were 
occupied by eight or ten persons. .The atmosphere was so 
close and foetid that several of the visitors were forced to seek 
the fresh air of the street. 

" ' These properties are owned by a wealthy retired Market 
street merchant,' said the sergeant. 'He is now in Europe 
living on the proceeds. The agent is a Mr. Dunlap, and the 
rental of the buildings amounts to $2,100 a year.' 

" In one of the rooms Mr. Murphy was most cordially re- 
ceived by two fine-looking black men, both of whom had 
signed the pledge. One of them (John Folk) was a banjo 
player. He had lamed his foot in the army. 

" ' Are you married to Ellen ?' asked Mr. Murphy, pointing 
to a woman who was lying on the floor with her face closely 
covered up. 

" ' Well, I'm married in a certain way ; I ain't in the regular 
way, because I ain't got the money to pay for a minister. 
It's ail I can do to raise money enough to eat ; and I give folks 
I know a rest here in the room rather than let them stay on 
the streets. They can't pay, because they've got nothing.' 

" ' Well, will you marry her if I pay the minister ?' 

" ' Oh, yes,' he cried, candidly. ' That is if she says so ; I 
love her well enough.' 

" < Will you consent, Ellen V 

" ' Yes, I'd like to very much,' she replied, as she threw the bed 
clothes off her face, and accepted Mr. Murphy's extended hand. 

" ' Then, come up to the Annex building on next Sunday 
morning and we'll have a marriage; I'll pay the minister^' 
said Mr. Murphy. 

" John took down his banjo and played ' Down the Swanee 
River,' while Mr. Murphy's son, who accompanied him, passed 
around the hat and a dollar was collected for the player. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 207 

"This put John in great glee, and he sang 'Yaller Girl 
Picking Cotton.' 

"It was almost too late an hour for the visit, but Mr. 
Murphy had been detained from starting out at half -past ten 
o'clock, as had been arranged. Many of the barrel houses 
were closed, but Mr. Murphy visited those that were open, 
and was everywhere received with respect. Many said they 
had heard him speak, and all appeared to have a cordial wel- 
come for him. 

" The reporter left them still climbing the rickety stairs at 
one o'clock this morning. It was surprising to see so few 
drunken persons. 

" * I guess they must have known Murphy was coming, and 
kept on their good behavior,' observed an officer. 

" ' How can a man stand over a range all day without taking 
a drop of porter now and then ?' asked one respectable colored 
man who had been a sailor. 

"'Take coffee instead,' replied Mr. Murphy. 'Its like a 
steamboat. If you pile on grease and oil you will kindle a 
hot fire, but it soon wants replenishing ; but put in good coal 
and you have a solid fire. So it is with coffee and bread. It's 
substantial, while the porter and gin give nourishment for 
only a time.' 

" i Dat's de God's truf,' exclaimed John Green, the ex- 
sailor ; i I guess I'll have to try it. Anyhow I'll be up to 
your Sunday breakfast, Mr. Murphy.' " 

A visit to some of the fire houses in Philadelphia led Mr. 
Murphy to a new idea. " Why does such a man as you drink ?" 
he asked of a large, well-built man, whose face bore indica- 
tions of dissipation. 

" Well, you see," answered the man, " we must have some 
stimulant when we are soaking wet at a fire, after being up all 
night, and that keeps up the appetite." 

" Wouldn't a good cup of coffee and a sandwich do as well, 
if not much better ?" 

"Yes," laughingly answered all the hands ; "but how in the 



208 THE TKUE PATH; 

world are we to get the coffee and sandwiches at midnight or 
daybreak, when buildings are threatened on all sides ?" 

" You should be served by the authorities. Come up to the 
meetings and sign the pledge in a body and I will endeavor to 
create an interest in the public mind so that you will be sup- 
plied with a good cup of coffee and plenty of sandwiches, as 
you are holding the pipe or passing on the water." 

" Go ahead," was the hearty, unanimous reply, " We are 
with you." 

The following testimonies by reformed men will be read 
with much interest : 

" Three weeks ago, my friends, I had on my hands a hotel 
and a bar, and over my counter death and damnation was pass- 
ing to my fellow creatures as fast as they could drink it or find 
the money to pay for it. I drank myself, I smoked, I chewed, 
I gambled. I was a servant of sin in every form. To-day I 
stand free in Christ, with my time, my money, and my life 
fully and forever given to God, and to God's work of saving 
men. I wouldn't give a day of this existence for a lifetime of 
the old life. I wouldn't change the joy of helping one poor 
soul out of the mire for all the world could offer." 

" I had fallen so low that I hadn't left an unpawned chair to 
sit on, or a bed to lie on. I wouldn't wait in the morning to 
go for my early drink until I had my shoes on, but would rush 
out bare-footed ; and, of course, it did not take long to bring 
me to a place where I had no shoes to put on. I became so 
ragged and debased that I skulked sidewise into my own door. 
I had one only feeling that was not utterly degraded. I did 
love my child, a beautiful and loving little boy. With this 
child in my arms I was another creature, and often I held him 
tight, and whispered to him that I would be a better man. 
Yet when this boy sickened before my eyes, I got drunk ; when 
this boy died, I was drunk ; when my boy was buried, I was 
lying in the Tombs, drunk. I served the devil fifteen years, 
for I began when a youth of eighteen, and all that precious 
time is lost out of my life. Only God could have helped me j 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 209 

only God can keep one ; but he does keep me, and I have faith 
to believe He will." 

" I do not know to this day what was s.aid, but I was suffi- 
ciently impressed to desire, when the invitation was given, to 
go into the inquiry room. But I was ashamed to go before my 
companion, and I have since known that he wanted me to go, 
but was ashamed to go before me. I said to him, when the 
offer was repeated, * Are you going ?' and he said, ' No ; are 
you ?' and I said, ' No.' So we went out together, and he told 
me he was going home to his babies, and I thought I would go 
and get a drink. At this saloon something stopped me, and I 
did not drink : I only said, ' Give me a cigar,' and with this I 
strolled back in the direction of the meeting. I passed a 
church in which overflowing prayer-meetings were being held, 
and I peeped in. They were just asking those who wanted to 
be helped to rise for prayer. I meant to go in, and had started, 
when, whom should I see rising with the rest, but my friend 
who had told me he was going home to see his babies. When 
I saw him I> wouldn't go in. When he saw me he wouldn't 
rise, but deliberately pulled off his overcoat and sat down as if 
he had found the place too hot for him. Ah ! so he had, it 
was too hot for him, and too hot for me. I went home, but I 
drank no more that night. When the next evening came, I 
went again to the meeting, and this time I took care to go 
alone. This time, when invited to go into the inquiry room I 
went, and when there, found my help lay in Christ, and I gave 
my heart to Him. Then began my trial, for I was afraid of 
my companions and my fellow- workmen. There were several 
hundreds of them, and only about twenty-five Christians ; but 
when they saw what a new and happy man -religion made of 
me, many of them were persuaded, and now we have over a 
hundred men who have turned from their ways of drunkenness 
and sin, and are living noble Christian lives." 

Samuel P. Godwin delivered the following telling remarks 
to an immense audience in the Tabernacle on April 6, 1877, 
amid great applause : "I could say a great many words when 



210 THE TRUE PATH ; 

I beheld a man on my left hand, who has been the subject of 
my prayers for the last twelve months, giving testimony in 
behalf of this great work. If Brother Murphy had accom- 
plished no other good in the hands of the Lord but the turning 
of this one young man to Christ, he would have done more 
than you or I have done in a lifetime. It is nothing for you 
and I to stand up in behalf of total abstinence, but it is some- 
thing for these dear souls that have dared to do right and to 
conquer. I feel like bowing down in reverence at the feet of 
men who have dared to come boldly and sign the pledge and 
keep it through the grace of God, and we ought to do all we 
can to advance the interest of such men. Let us do all we 
can to replace them in their position in society and the family 
circle, and lift them up to true manhood." 

The success of the Murphy movement in Philadelphia was 
furthered by the cheap coffee-houses which had been estab- 
lished some years before. The cure of the drunkard is always 
attended with great difficulties, for every temptation must be 
removed, while he is as yet convalescing from the terrible 
disease. Liquor saloons to enhance their attractions have 
been in the habit of spreading a free lunch for the purchaser 
of their liquid poison, and the hungry man is thus tempted to 
do that which tends to his eternal ruin by all the subtile arts 
of appeal to his necessities. So much has this become the 
case throughout the land that thousands have been drawn into 
the coil, who otherwise might have remained honored and 
respectable citizens. When to this fact is added the equally 
dangerous one that every reputable restaurant, except such as 
are conducted on purely temperance principles, has a bar in 
connection with its other business, we commence to realize 
how insidious and well masked are the snares set for the care- 
less and unwary. The system set on foot in Philadelphia 
gave the working man a good lunch, or a morning or evening 
meal for five or ten cents, as the case might be, and instead of 
the deadly dram of the so-called " free lunch," he got a large 
bowl of excellent coffee, with rich cream and sugar. The 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. l 213 

remarkable success of this enterprise merits a few words 
descriptive of its inception and progress. We cannot do 
better than to quote the clear and compact account of a 
well known temperance writer, who was familiar with all the 
facts of the matter: " In the fall of 1874 Joshua 1^. Bailey, 
one of oar most active, clear-headed merchants, who had been 
for many years an earnest temperance man, determined to 
give the cheap coffee-house experiment a fair trial, cost what 
it m>ght ; for he saw that if it could be made successful, it 
would be a powerful agency in the work of prevention. He 
began in a small way, taking a modest store at the corner of 
Market and Fifteenth streets., and fitting it up in a neat and 
attractive manner. With a few pounds of coffee and a few 
dozens of rolls, the place was opened, the single attendant, a 
woman, acting the double part of cook and waiter. For five 
cents a pint mug of the best Java coffee, with milk and sugar, 
and a good-sized roll, were furnished. 

" From the very start ' The Workingmen's Central Coffee- 
House,' as Mr. Bailey called it, was successful. In the imme- 
diate neighborhood five hundred workmen were employed on 
the city buildings, and opposite stood the Pennsylvania Rail- 
road freight depot, to which came daily about the same num- 
ber of men — draymen, teamsters and others. It took but a 
few days to so crowd the new coffee-room at the usual lunching 
time as to require an additional assistant. From day to day 
the business went on increasing, until more help and larger 
accommodations became necessary. Soon a complete kitchen 
had to built in the basement, and the adjoining store added, 
in order to meet the steadily-enlarging demands upon the new 
establishment. The fame of the good coffee,* which was bet- 
ter than most people found at home, spread far and near, and 
larger and larger numbers of clerks, workingmen and others, 
turned their steps daily, at lunch time, towards the Central 
Coffee -House. Jt was so much better than the poor stuff 
served in most of the eating-houses ; and, with the sweet roll 
added, so much better than the free lunch and glass of beer or 



214 THE TRUE PATH ; 

whisky with which too many had been accustomed to regale 

themselves. 

" Steadily swelled the tide of custom. Within a year a third 
store adjoining was added. But the enlarged premises soon 
proved inadequate to the accommodation of the still-increasing 
crowd. 

" At this writing ' The Central ' is from six. to seven times 
larger than when first opened ; and there lunch in its rooms, 
daily, nearly two thousand persons. One room has been fitted 
up for ladies exclusively, in which from forty to fifty can 
lunch at one time. 

" But Mr. Bailey looked beyond the cheap coffee and rolls by 
which he was able to keep so many away from bar-rooms and 
restaurants where liquor was sold. He believed in other influ- 
ences and safeguards. And to this end, and at his own cost, 
he fitted up the various rooms over the seven stores extend- 
ing along Market street from Fifteenth to Broad, in which the 
coffee-rooms are located, and set them apart for various uses. 
Here is a lecture-hall, capable of seating four hundred persons ; 
a free reading-room, well warmed and lighted and supplied 
with the best daily news]3apers, American and English illus- 
trated publications, and the standard periodicals ; besides four 
other rooms that will hold from seventy to one hundred per- 
sons, which are used for various meeting purposes, all in con- 
nection with temperance. Five regular services are held in 
the lecture-room every week, viz. : ' Bible Reading, 5 on Sun- 
day afternoon ; ' Temperance Experience Meeting,' on Men- 
day evening ; * Prayer and Praise Meeting, 5 Tuesday evening ; 
' Gospel Temperance Meeting, 5 on Thursday evening ; and 
c Youths 5 Temperance Meeting, 5 Friday evening. These meet- 
ings are often crowded, and, like the coffee-rooms below, 
attract audiences made up from every rank in society. At 
many of these meetings, Mr. Bailey presides in person. 

" Encouraged by the success of this first effort, Mr. Bailey 
opened another cheap coffee-house in the very centre of the 
wholesale trade of the city, where thousands of clerks, w T ork- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. . 215 

ingmen and merchants were in the habit of resorting for lunch 
or dinner to the restaurants and bar-rooms in the neighborhood. 
This, located at No. 31 South Fourth street, he called ' The 
Model Coffee-House.' 

" From the first it was crowded even to an uncomfortable 
extent. The demands of its patrons soon rendered larger 
quarters a necessity. A new building was erected specially- 
adapted to the purpose, many novel features being introduced 
which a. twelve months' experience had suggested. 

"The new 'Model' opened June 1, 1876. Many persons 
thought it was too large, and that it would never be filled. 
But it was thronged on the day of opening, and on every day 
since the demands upon it have been fully up to its capacity. 
The number lunching here daily is about three thousand. 

" In the establishment of the coffee-houses there were, of 
course, many mistakes, the results of inexperience. Many 
things had to be unlearned as well as many learned. But mis- 
takes were promptly corrected. With the growth of the 
work, ability to provide for it seemed to keep pace, and modi- 
fications in the management were adopted as necessity dic- 
tated. Not much was anticipated at the commencement be- 
yond furnishing a mug of coffee and a roll of bread, but it 
soon became apparent that something more than this was 
needed. To meet this necessity, the coffee-house bill of fare 
was greatly extended, and now quite a variety of nutritious 
and substantial dishes are provided, and each at the uniform 
price of five cents. The main feature — the coffee— is, how- 
ever, preserved. A full pint mug of the best Java (equal to 
two ordinary cups) with pure, rich milk . and white sugar, and 
two ounces of either wheat or brown bread, all for five cents, 
is the every-day lunch of many a man who, but for this pro- 
visions, would be found in the dram shop. 

" No dish, as we have said, costs over five cents, which is 
the standard price the year round, whatever the fluctuations 
of markets may be. In addition to the bread and coffee 
already mentioned for five cents, the bill of fare comprises 



216 THE TllUE PATH ; 

puddings of rice, tapioca and corn starch, baked apples 
dressed with sugar and milk, all sorts of pies (half a pie being 
given for a portion), mushes of cracked wheat, corn and oat- 
meal, dumplings, eggs, potatoes, beans, ham, corned beef, 
3iv T er, 'scrapple, 5 sausage, custards, soups, pickles, and in sea- 
son, fresh fruits. Of bread, there are Boston and Philadel- 
phia brown, wheat, Philadelphia and Vienna rolls. A pint 
glass of milk with a roll costs five cents ; butter three cents, 
and extra rolls one cent each ; so that for ten or fifteen cents 
a man gets a full luncheon, as every portion of food is equal to 
a large saucer heaped. 

" These establishments require, of course, the most methodi- 
cal, orderly and careful management, with capable matrons at 
the head of each, and a steward or superintendent to make 
intelligent purchases. At the ' Model Coffee-House,' there are 
nearly fifty employees, and, excepting three or four men, they 
are girls and women. The upper rooms of the building are 
for the lodgings, offices, laundry and drawing-room, for the 
use of the employees. The girls, who are mostly of country 
birth and training, are thus furnished with a good and safe 
home, where they have books and music, large and well-fur- 
nished chambers, a good table — they dine at one family table 
in their own dining-room — and have their washing and ironing 
done in the house. They are required to be neat and tidy in 
appearance, respectable and discreet in character and manner." 

We have already alluded to the further extension of this 
cheap coffee-house system, under the special patronage of the 
ladies of Philadelphia, when the Murphy enthusiasm stirred 
society to its bottom depths. Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, and 
other good Samaritans among her noble-hearted sex, labored 
assiduously in this direction, and no one, outside of those who 
watched all the tides and currents of influence that were work- 
ing under the promptings of God's spirit, can fully appreciate 
the immense help :hat Francis Murphy got through this 
agency. He, himself, has been free to acknowledge it in 
glowing terms, as indeed this man has ever, in the words of 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 217 

the frankest humility, been prompt to concede the fullest 
measure of praise to others. 

The Murphy work in Philadelphia, including the meetings 
held under his name, and the ground swell of the storm of ex- 
citement itself, lasted for nearly two months. Many of his 
distinguished co-laborers of Pittsburgh fame worked with him, 
and conducted enthusiastic meetings after the great temper- 
ance reformer himself had departed for other fields of labor. 
The number of signers of the Murphy pledge in Pittsburgh 
was estimated at not less than 80,000 ; and as a result of the 
Philadelphia work, a two months precious and glorious harvest 
— there were about 120,000 (so stated). Of course, it is dim- 
cult to get exact figures, in estimating the results of a mighty 
wave of enthusiasm, but the foregoing approximate to the 
truth. When to these are added the large number of drunk- 
ards reclaimed in the various local movements, which may be 
called the overflow of the great central excitements at Pitts- 
burgh and Philadelphia, the aggregate of the fruits of the 
Murphy temperance reform in Pennsylvania may be set down 
as not far from 400,000. 

It is curious how a little incident has sometimes started a 
Murphy movement in a town, without any warning or appar- 
ently sufficient reason for so powerful a sweep of feeling. 
Truly the harvest has always proven itself to be ready for the 
reapers. The following cases illustrate this very well, and 
show what great results may come from insignificant causes. 
Van Ettenville, N. Y., was probably one of the worst towns 
in the State, as probably more liquor was drunk there in a day 
then in any other town of its size ; according to the verdict of 
a resident. 

" In political times whisky used to flow in the streets. The 
side that could stand the largest number of drinks won the 
fight. ' The boys ' — Col. Caldwell, Gen. Gregg, and others — 
used to go up from Elmira and hold meetings that generally 
ended in glorious drunks. Why, they laughed at the cru- 
saders, and thought it good fun. 



218 THE TRUE PATH ; 

" About six weeks ago one of the best fellows there was go- 
ing along the street one morning, and met another. The first 
said : " You're looking better lately than I've seen you in a 
long time.' ' Well, I am better. Fact is, I haven't been 
drinking anything for about two weeks, and I've about made 
up my mind that I'll stop.' c Just what I've been thinking of 
myself. Haven't we been making fools of ourselves long 
enough ? ' 

" Out of such a conversation as this the movement in Van 
Ettenville was begun. These two, with a few others, sent to 
Elmira for speakers for a meeting. The men who arranged 
for the meeting, who did all the work, and who packed the 
house were, or had been drinking men. The place was carried 
completely. 

"Another instance, in demonstration of the truth of our 
remarks, may, perhaps, satisfy the reader : 

" The inauguration of the movement at Somerset, Ohio, was 
so peculiar as to warrant notice, and shows how slight an 
instrument may set this great machinery of reform in motion. 
Two carpenters, Taylor and Eagle, having squandered nearly 
all their pay for a certain work in drink, were finishing up in 
Stein's saloon. Taylor produced a Murphy pledge, which his 
brother, a reformed drinker at Lancaster, had sent him, and 
began to talk of the movement. Stein jeered at him, and 
offered him ten cents to sign. He regarded it as an immense 
joke when Taylor did sign ; and Eagle, having no other pledge, 
signed the same card. A few days later, Dr. Rickey, one of 
Lancaster's noble workers, saw Taylor here, and gave him the 
eight pledges he happened to have with him. In less than an 
hour he was back for more. New pledges were ordered 
printed, and in a very short time the enthusiasm called for 
public meetings and the Murphy movement was begun. 

" And thus we find it through Indiana, New York, Pennsyl- 
vania, Maryland, and throughout most of the States. By 
insignificant beginnings a flame of enthusiasm has been 
kindled." 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 219 

The Murphy movement is distinguished on the part of its 
followers by the wearing of a bit of blue ribbon worn in the 
button-hole of the coat. Other reform movements are desig- 
nated by different colors, as for instance that of Dr. Reynolds, 
shy red. In various parts of the West, it is common to notice 
on the part of almost everybody on the street, the bit of rib- 
bon, which indicates adherence to one or the other of the 
different reform currents. Of course there is a slight differ- 
ence in the organization of the various leagues. The white- 
ribbon is a sort of side degree, so to- speak, of the red-ribbon 
league, as it is worn only by women and young men under 
eighteen. The difference between the red-ribbon pledge and 
that which has already been given may be seen in the follow- 
ing : 

" We the undersigned, for our own good, and the good of 
the world in which we live, do hereby promise and engage 
with the help of Almighty God, to abstain from buying, 
selling or using alcoholic or malt beverages, wine or cider in- 
cluded." 

The wearing of the ribbon has this grand advantage ; it 
saves the wearer from the danger of an invitation to drink. 
Of course this building up of barriers around the reformed 
drunkard is the great object of all organizations in the carry- 
ing on of the work, after the first swell of excitement has 
passed by. To save the results and utilize the fruits of the 
work is even a more important function than that of kindling 
the flame. The Murphy work at the outset did not sufficiently 
cover this important branch of the labor of saving the drunk- 
ard ; "but with time and development the reformer himself, 
and the able and experienced men whom he has gathered 
around him have fully wrought out a system for perpetuating 
the influences, once planted, into a permanence. 



220 THE TRUE PATH I 



CHAPTER XVII. 

MURPHY ? S SPEECH AT COLUMBUS, OHIO. — THE WORK AT ELMIBA, 
N. Y. — INTERESTING SCENES IN THE NEW YORK REVIVAL. — 
FACTS, INCIDENTS AND FIGURES OF THE RESULTS OF THE 
MURPHY MOVEMENT IN THE SOUTHERN TIER OF COUNTIES, 
GROWING OUT OF THE ELMIRA WORK.— FRANCIS MURPHY'S 
SPEECH AT CHATAUQUA. 

Francis Murphy's labors are in such demand that to utilize 
the good to be accomplished in the highest possible degree, he 
has been obliged to scatter his personal efforts over different 
points, himself starting the conflagration, and trusting the 
feeding and extension of the work to the labors of local 
speakers under the leadership of his lieutenants. After start- 
ing the reform movement at Elmira, N. Y., Mr. Murphy de- 
parted, but the glorious tide of enthusiasm swelled and grew 
without ceasing till the end, and the whole tier of Southern 
counties felt the effects in a series of successive local excite- 
ments. This portion of the Murphy work, for such it is en- 
titled to be called, no less than if he had been continually pres- 
ent, it will be the object of the present chapter to describe. 
But before recurring to the Elmira work proper, we shall take 
occasion to present to our readers an excellent specimen of 
Murphy's oratory in the speech he delivered at Columbus, 
Ohio, in June, 1877. It is of characteristic flavor, and will 
amply repay perusal. Of course, Mr. Murphy's speeches, like 
those cf most powerful orators, are made to be heard rather 
than read, full of those strokes which get their value from the 
personal force of the man. The Columbus speech, however, is 
full of good things, and would do credit to a man of more 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 221 

culture and experience than the great temperance reformer can 
lay claim to. The portions we give are as follows : 
" Mr, Chairman ; My Friends : 

" I am glad to be here to-night and listen to the testimony 
ol these two Christian gentlemen who have been the means, 
under God, of bringing joy and peace to so many hearts. I 
am glad to be here, and to stand on this platform and have the 
honor of being introduced by this young gentleman, who has 
been redeemed through the kind ministrations of my brother 
David Hall, and who to-night, stands erect in all the dignity 
of his new-born life, and can stand up and say, i I know that 
if the earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, I have 
a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the 
heavens.' And though this work should cease, and though 
nothing else should have been accomplished through the visit 
to your city but the redemption, the complete redemption, of 
this young man would be a sufficient remuneration for every 
cent that you have paid out, for every night that you have 
spent, and for every prayer that you have uttered. May God 
bless the movement, and^may it continue to go on until the 
last wandering son has been redeemed and brought back to his 
father's house, and received the best robe and the gold ring and 
pair of shoes. Thanks be to God for the triumphs of this 
moral reform that has nothing in it of malice, nothing in it of 
hatred, nothing in it of egotism, nothing in it of self -right- 
eousness ; for we don't stand off and pray and thank God that 
we are not like other people ; that we pay our taxes and tithes, 
and such things as that ; we prefer to stand by the foot of the 
cross and say, ' Lord, be merciful to me, a sinner.' That is our 
prayer ; and w T ith it we shall go forth, not claiming any self- 
righteousness, not claiming that we are holier than others, and 
fear to come in contact with our fellow-men when we meet 
them, lest our garments become soiled ; but if you are men, 
by the grace of God ; if the golden links of the brotherhood 
of man hare been, so to speak, clinched around our hearts, and 
by God's invisible angel carried to the everlasting throne and 



222 THE TKUE PATH ; 

there securely fastened— if this has been done, we can go 
down into the wilderness, blessed be God ; we can go down 
into the wilderness and to the solitary places,, and to the 
prisons of this country and proclaim liberty to the captives, 
and the opening of a better life to the oppressed of this coun- 
try, to the weeping wives and starving children. 

" I would like to pay a fitting tribute to the men who have 
been engaged in this work. I have no need of saying any- 
thing of these men to you ; a eulogy is not called for ; but I 
want to say that these two plain men you see on this platform 
— Brother David and Brother George — in the city of Pitts- 
burgh, when they came to sign the pledge, astonished the 
natives, to use a homely expression ; and if this movement has 
been a success in the city of Pittsburgh, I wish to say to you 
that these men have contributed as much to that success as 
Frank Murphy. I have done very little for this movement in 
comparison with what other men have. 

" The press of this country has done a great work for this 
movement, and I wish now to express my heartfelt thanks for 
the kind consideration I have received in your city, knowing 
well that I come to you making no profession of scholarship 
or oratory, for I was starved in the morning of my life ; 
school-houses were scarce where I was born, and it was con- 
sidered best not to allow the boys to go over there beyond 
where he might receive a religious education, for fear his reli- 
gious ideas might be proselyted to some extent, and hence I 
had to be caged up. 

" And let me say to you I would not advise you not to go to 
school, no matter Avhat the religious belief of the teacher is, 
because knowledge is power wherever you go, and it is knowl- 
edge that makes men strong and noble, and enables them to 
stand up so evenly-balanced with such a magnanimous spirit , 
and heart that all who know them can stand up and say, 
' There, that is a man.' And it is a pity for us who have been 
deprived of an education and are compelled to stand before 
the world feeling the necessity of it. It is a beautiful thing 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 223 

for the American people that when an American comes up to 
sign the pledge, but very few of them will stand up and just 
make an excuse, with their finger on their forehead and say, 
i Will you please sign my name ?' You will see very few of 
them make their scratch. It is something you have reason to 
be proud of. The foundations of truth and justice are laid in 
intelligence in this country. I believe that is the power that 
moves the whole of this country. 

" It is the grandest thought that can come to me to-night 5 
that I am a man with a living, breathing soul within me, and 
that the world, grand and glorious as it is to-night, with its 
sloping hillsides decorated with God's precious flowers — lilies 
of the valley, attired in their wonderful splendor — as God has 
woven them into His carpet ; they, too, speak to us ; yes ; and 
from babbling springs, and from flowing- brooks, and from 
great streams that leap to the ocean, and from the grand 
mountains that break forth before you into singing, and the 
golden harvest-fields that wave before you, bringing God so 
near to you that, reverently, man should take off his hat while 
He speaks to us in everything. Standing before you in the 
limitless prairie, and heaven, with its bright constellations 
looking down upon us with so sweet, so pure, so holy a light, 
oh, how they touch the divinity that is within ! how the long- 
ing soul seeks for that transparent beauty that speaks to us in 
these bright gems that are put there by the sacred power of 
God Himself, beyond the reach of sin, beyond the reach of 
wrong, the living, perpetual and eternal testimony of His own 
power ; omnipotent in Himself, speaking to us to-night with 
a language too holy for utterance ; and from the sea that He 
holds in the palm of His hand, and from the mountains that 
have been weighed in the balance ; the seasons that come 
and go, touching everything about U3, telling of their 
approach and their departure. When these things shall have 
passed away, the immortal soul, the divine power that is 
within us, by a power known only to itself, on the invisible 
wings of its own faith and own might, can soar beyond all 



224 THE TRUE PATH ; 

this and pass in the twinkling of an eye to the very constella- 
tions, and stand and gaze upon their beauty ; sweep beyond 
them through the milky way and stand at the pearly gates of 
God's eternal city and into the golden streets, and can stand 
on the banks of the river of life and can behold the water of 
life as it courses from the throne of God, can stand under the 
shadow of the tree of life, and by a faith beyond the power 
of darkness or distance to dim, can see the golden streets and 
purple fruit that is made for the healing of the nations. Oh, 
to be a sober man ! What a grand thought ! To be a sober 
man, redeemed, saved, and every chain broken ; a man restored 
to his sober, virtuous, Christian manhood. I thank God that 
I am a man ; I thank God that he made me so ; I am no ma- 
terial thing, but a living, breathing soul ; and the world, to- 
night, with all its beauty and grandeur, when it is swept out 
of existence, this soul shall live on forever, during the cease- 
less ages of eternity ; blessed be God for this thought. 

"Yes, it pays to be sober — it pays to be sober. This 
new life that comes to me to-night, I have no language to 
describe it to you. It is universally admitted among sensible 
and candid people, everywhere, that drunkenness is the great 
curse of our social national life. It is not characteristic of 
Americans, for the same may be said with greater emphasis of 
the social life of Great Britain ; but it is one of the things 
about which there can be no doubt, that cholera and typhoid 
fever, and all the rest of diseases that come to us, bring less 
of fatality and infinitely less of sorrow. There are wives, 
mothers and children to-night, within every circle that em- 
braces the young lives, who are weeping over some victim of 
the seductive destroyer. East, West, North and South there 
are men and women who can not be trusted with liquor in 
their hands ; men and women who have ceased to fight the 
appetite that has power within itself to destroy everything 
that makes life desirable ; men and women who, when they 
see the labels of intoxication painted on the windows, as they 
pass by, feel the blood coursing faster in their veins ; so to 



OR,. GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 225 

speak, they can almost taste it in their mouths, because of this 
terrible appetite that they have cultivated and brought to 
such wonderful perfection. In passing along the street where 
liquor is they will inhale the fragrance, and are almost com- 
pelled to stop and wait around. There is a fascination about 
it ; they feel the want and necessity of it ; want of just this 
stimulant to lift them up ; they are dreary and weary and dis- 
consolate, and just a little sick. Oh, how precious it would 
be to the longing appetite ! And, I think,' to-night, in this 
great work of reform how much we need Christian charity 
and Christian sympathy to be able to measure the strength of 
appetite. Men are not brought there immediately, but after 
years of respectability and years of pleasant life, and of pass- 
ing back and forth through respectable society, and being 
toasted as the acknowledged guests and brightest stars in your 
city, have cultivated this appetite until it became a mad pas- 
sion, and they lose control of themselves, and then are, so to 
speak, kicked out on the street, and it is said, ' You are a 
miserable drunkard, and good for nothing.' And the case of 
these men has been looked upon as entirely hopeless, and no 
person cares for them. I think that this movement is a special 
dispensation from God Himself, to redeem the poor unfortu- 
nate drunkard ; and while the great temperance movements 
heretofore sought to keep men from becoming drunkards, 
while the poor men who have been wounded in the battle, 
whose arms have been broken and their reason dethroned, and 
they become maniacs on the street, are left with no person to 
take them to an inn and pay their bills, this movement seems 
to be a necessity of the present state of temperance, and must, 
and by the grace of God it will, quicken the Church and the 
hearts of humanity. I believe it will compel us to go out into 
the world and save these poor wanderers. 

" In spite of what we see of men, socially, and the ter- 
rible appetite, the terrible temptation, and the power it 
has over some men, notwithstanding the fact that all this is 
known, yet there are gentlemen in society who give parties, 



226 THE TRUE PATH ; 

and ladies who issue their cards, and send them out to William 
and James and John, saying that t Susan desires the pleasure of 
their company at her house on a certain evening. 5 All this is 
very nice, and Susan is a splendid girl, and James and Wil- 
liam don their best suits and get their girls,, and how they will 
go down there ! Yes, sir, the arrangements have all been 
made. It is among the bon ton, the best people of the place. 
It is just the place for a fine time, and William is just the man 
to give it. His heart is as great as he is wealthy ; what a 
queenly wife he has, too, and how she adorns things about the 
place ! Yes, indeed. 

" The young men look forward with anticipation, and the 
ladies have their suits made ; the young men have theirs pre- 
pared for the occasion ; the coachmen are dressed in their 
livery, don their high collars and silk hats and the horses are 
all aglow, if you please, for the occasion ; they seem to catch 
the spirit of it. The drivers are more erect and graceful, and 
their whips have a silvery tongue to them that the horses seem 
to understand. Why, the whole air is pregnant with the 
spirit of the occasion ; the carriages start off, and soon the 
house can be seen on the hillside. You can see the beautiful 
pine trees, and the beautiful blossoming trees, and the weeping 
willow gracefully bending almost to the earth to kiss it. 
Through the trees can be seen the strange intoxicating light, 
of the Chinese lanterns, that tell you the whole palace is alivo 
with joy. Soon the carriages roll up, one after another. The 
bell rings and there is a committee of gentlemen and ladies in 
waiting to receive you, with a 'How are you? Welcome, 
welcome ; here, in this way ; this way, if you please ; ' and 
their hats and coats are taken, and everything is arranged in 
the most classical style. Why, we become as young as we 
used to be, as we step into the spacious reception rooms filled 
with the fragrance and beautiful bouquets, and see the young 
and beautiful guests. It seems to be a new paradise that has 
openei up before Charles and William and James. There are 
folding doors that extend across, between the rooms, and 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPEKAlSrCE. 22 ; 



Susan has opened them. By-and-by the most exquisite lady in 
the room has been called to touch the musical box ; as she 
nicely adjusts the stool to its proper height, and, being seated, 
she manipulates the keys, pouring forth the sweetest strains of 
music, the boys step out and get their partners and walk 
around a little, at first very gracefully, you know, as they hear 
the music. By-and-by they get a little intoxicated with the 
music and the boys get to waltzing around a little. It is a 
splendid entertainment, yes, indeed. Soon beautiful ladies 
come with silver trays and cut glass filled with sparkling wine, 
with grace and glory, and with hands so plump and beautiful 
that they outrival the gems that flash upon them, and almost 
dazzle your eyes. I tell you it is no inferior class of society, 
but the queenly women who have been cultured to perfection 
and understand what the etiquette is that goes to make 
up a place of this kind. These ladies approach and say, 
i Please take a glass of wine, if you please, James, with me.' 
James says, ' Well, I don't wish to.' ' Why, James, take a 
glass with me, if you please ; take a glass now with Susan ; just 
take a glass to-night.' It requires a great deal of courage for 
a young man to straighten back in his chair and say : i No, 
miss, I don't indulge in the use of wine on any occasion.' It 
requires a great deal of courage to say that, although it may 
seem a small thing to do. But a man who can do that, and 
do it nobly, has won a greater victory than Grant ever won, 
even when he received the sword of Lee on the battle-ground 
of Appomattox. You say it is a small thing. It may seem a 
small thing to many of you, but there is, so to speak, a dignity 
of manhood and a courtesy that belongs to the young lady, 
and the courtesies that are to be extended to her from a young 
gentleman who claims to be gallant, and who holds his head 
erect, and who is expected to be looked upon with some degree 
of inferiority if he does not accept a little wine on such an oc- 
casion as this. They will say to him -. c Why, I am perfectly 
astonished at you.' Oh, yes; but let me say to you, young 
man, be true to yourself ; yield obedience to the dictates of an 



228 THE TRUE PATH ; 

honest heart. Remember the baptism of your mother ; remem- 
ber the counsels of your father ; remember the sacred duties 
that are devolving upon you ; remember the sacred trusts that 
rest upon you. You are, perhaps, placed in some position ; per- 
haps the most honorable in the city ; perhaps you are at the 
counting room of a banker, or counter of some merchant prince, 
and have control of his business and the direction of it ; and it 
will be one of the grandest events in your life to have the fact 
come to that man that William refused to take wine at that 
party. It will increase his confidence in you a hundred per 
cent., and though he may never mention it to you, you will see 
a change in the conduct of that man towards you, and at 
no distant day will he reward you in a way that will do you 
good and give you a stimulus that will aid you all your life. 

."I am one of those that believe that if the wine cellars 
were cleared out we wouldn't have much trouble with saloons. 
I believe that wine cellars have a great deal to do in making 
saloon drinking. I believe if the wealthy men and women in 
this* country would come down to assist those whom they con- 
sider the worthless and unfortunate, who are the victims of 
intemperance, the work would be done in less than three 
months. There are women in this city who have not yet 
signed the pledge, and there are men in this city who have not 
signed the pledge who should have done so ; and if they would 
do so, I tell you it would shake the city to its very foundations, 
and a greater and grander victory would come to you than we 
have ever had yet, if we would only do what we might in this 
blessed work. 

" There are some men who will say they can drink or let it 
alone when they have a mind to. I grant you that some men 
can do so, but we know that liquor has a wonderful fascination 
for some men ; we know that it has a wonderful power over 
them ; young men occasionally drinking together become 
married to each other, and there is a friendship existing among 
them that does not exist among other persons. If Tom had 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 229 

been in the habit of getting off a little, here is Bill that will 
step around and hunt him up, and when he finds him— ten 
chances to one if he finds him — he will prevail on his taking 
something. He will say, ' Come Tom, let us take something/ 
Tom says, * I ain't a going to do it.* ' Don't bother ; come 
along, Tom ; come up and take something ; just take one 
drink,' and thus would their kind persuasion overcome their 
comrades. I think if Christian men were just as much in 
earnest as drinking men are we would have a wonderful re- 
vival. But, for instance, if you go rato a church, and no per- 
son speaks to you, you will not attend much ; when you go in, 
there is a man dressed in black who points you to a seat, but 
never says ' I am glad to see you,' or makes any inquiry where 
you are from. When you go out the people crowd the aisles 
and do not speak to you ; do you suppose that drinking men 
are going back to hear you preach ? Not much ; they don't 
want any such entertainment. It would be better for you to 
pass by the men you are in the habit of speaking to every day, 
and speak to the strangers. If you meet a young man, ask 
him where he boards, and what his circumstances are ; if he 
has come to your city, who his employer is, and where he is 
boarding. Perhaps you will find he is in an attic chamber, and 
in needy circumstances ; he is some mother's son ; invite him 
down to take dinner with you ; be a father to him ; perhaps 
some one may be a father to your boy. Don't be so self- 
righteous that you will allow people to go out of the church 
without making their acquaintance. Be sociable and friendly, 
and they will come back to you, but. not till then. Think of 
these men that chase each other around the street, trying to 
find each other. I remember the time when I was in the habit 
of taking a little something for my stomach's sake ; I was one 
of the boys who stuck at it ; when I got hold of a customer I 
didn't let him go away without taking something to drink, and 
having some fun. ' Just take one drink,' and that one drink, 
in all probability, leads to a spree." 

Mr. Murphy here illustrated the strong attachment shown by 



230 THE TRUE PATH ; 

companions in drink for one another by relating the story that 
is told of two Irishmen, upon their recent arrival here from 
their mother country, describing the tenacity with which the 
musquitoes hung to them in a swamp. The speaker rendered 
the story with great effect by telling it in the genuine brogue 
of his countrymen, and as he concluded his picture of the 
scene, with the remark of one of those traveling companions, 
who, upon peeping from under his blanket, beheld a fire-fly, 
thinking it one of their tormentors still in search of them, 
'Fergus, we might as well be afther getting out now, for here 
is one of the crathurs, with his lantern, looking for us,' the 
laughter and applause were tremendous. 

" So," continued the speaker, " I have been in about the 
same position of my countrymen ; I have had to run away 
from my friends with whom I have been associated ; I have 
had to run away to escape intoxication ; there is no getting 
away from them ; they will hold on to you asking you to take 
something, /just one drink,' but that 'just one drink' would 
perhaps end in a spree of three days, and the wind-up be a 
sorrowful one, I assure you. 

" Let me say to you to-night, young man, you who are free 
from this terrible evil ; let me say to you, husband, to-night, 
if you are expecting to drink or let it alone whenever you 
have a mind to, remember there is a wonderful hidden power 
in this dreadful habit ; remember that it is a silken thread 
you can hardly see, but that it will wind itself around 
and around you until it will have you enchained beneath its 
power, and when you undertake to break away, will cost you 
all the strength you have got, and, perhaps, like many of us, 
you will not be able of yourself to break the chain that has 
held you bound down to a habit that will rob you of all your 
property ; rob you of your reason ; destroy your sense of 
honor, arrd steal from you your good name. ' He that steals 
my purse steals trash, but he, sir, who steals from me my 
good name, takes that which doth not enrich him, but makes 
me poor indeed.' 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 231 

cc Thou fiend of rum, Oh, thou invisible spirit ! if we had 
no name to know thee by, why not call thee devil ! 

" From this platform, in this hall of yours, where the eloquent 
tongues of your statesmen have inspired you with confidence 
in the right, with confidence in justice, with confidence in truth, 
that our forefathers placed upon the altar of our country, though 
it was dimmed by the infernal shadow of bloody slavery ; 
though, so to speak, its like had almost gone out beneath the 
iron hand of oppression, from this platform have come the voices, 
have come the manhood, have come the virtues that have 
touched your manly hearts, and have made each man and each 
woman stand erect again — stand erect clothed with a power be- 
yond the reach of slavery, clothed you with a strength equal to 
Hercules, making you almost omnipotent, and you hava 
marched from this capital with a heart filled with the love of 
truth, with a patriotism that encompassed our beloved country, 
done your duty and have won a victory for all time for the 
cause of justice, and for republicanism. But to-night there 
is a grander cause pleading for you, and a grander silence 
that speaks to you. I hear to-night the wail of the oppressed 
mothers of this country ; I hear five hundred thousand vic- 
tims that are chained to-night in the living tombs of this 
country, who have been poisoned by the malaria of the upas 
tree of death. This upas tree has got its roots in the sacred 
soil of this country. Is it possible that God's sunlight has 
ever touched it ? that God's rain has ever watered it ? Never, 
never, never. It has been watered by the blood of mothers' 
hearts. Yes, on its branches to-night hang the death-war- 
rants of more than twenty millions of the bravest men and 
the queenliest women that God ever gave to the world. Let 
us cut it down, Jimmy ; let us cut it down, David ; let us cut 
it down, men. With pledges in your hands, come to the res- 
cue. Let us strike a blow into its infernal trunk. Let us hate 
it, men, let us hate it. See it stagger. Clear the way, and 
give it a place to fall. Let us trim its branches ; let us log its 
dead, infernal trunk ; let us set fire to it. Let us have a bon- 



232 THE TRUE PATH ; 

fire in Columbus, and burn it to ashes, and bury the ashes so 
deep down in the bowels of the earth, that by the blessing of 
God, by the blessing' of heaven, it shall never, never, never, 
NEVER have a resurrection. May God bless you." 

The Murphy movement in Eimira, N. Y., was put into 
motion by the Rev. W. E. Knox, a gentleman whose name has 
become a "household word" in every house in that city. 
Reading the glowing and almost incredible accounts in the 
different journals of the great and wonderful temperance 
wave that had struck the city of Pittsburgh, and swept over it, 
carrying all things before and with it, he felt what a blessed 
thing it would be if such a " tidal wave " as that could sweep 
over Eimira in the same fashion, and with the same glorious 
results. This feeling entered him, and took such firm posses- 
sion of his being that he could not pass a single day without 
being haunted by it. Finally it became a determination. He 
resolved that Eimira should have a shock — a grand sweep of the 
temperance reform, which indeed it most sorely needed. The 
Elmirans had become apparently indifferent to drunkenness 
and drunkards in their midst ; and went their way, seemingly 
caring very little whether the awful evil was killed forever, or 
whether the drunkard was brought to the correct estimation of 
his degraded condition, and helped to a blessed reformation. 
The place was full of drinking saloons, and a man reeling 
through the streets had become a familiar object, exciting very 
little if any surprise or sorrow. The youth of the city resorted 
to the numerous " corners," and there acquired a desire for 
intoxicating liquors. What was to be done to put a stop to 
all this evil ? The reverend gentleman went to the different 
pastors of the churches and broached the subject to them, pic- 
turing the state of Eimira affairs as they really were, and 
besought them to co-operate with him in bringing the matter 
home to the people. 

He was received with much interest and attention, and his 
plan fully discussed. They were perfectly willing and ready 
to join him in his work ; they fully agreed with him as to the 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEBAKCE. 233 

crying necessity for reform in this direction in their town ; but 
they could not see how the means were to be obtained to con- 
duct a temperance movement. Each pastor had his own work 
to carry out, and each seemed doubtful and uncertain as to the 
ultimate result of a temperance revival. Nothing daunted, the 
Rev. Mr. Knox went to the leading gentlemen of the place, and 
laid the matter before them for their consideration, pointing out 
plainly and emphatically how much this thing Avas needed, and 
how much good would certainly be the result. These gentlemen 
regarded the matter in a very favorable light, and were posi- 
tive that if such a movement were started in Elmira the public 
would receive it cordially, respond to it, and its success would 
be sure and signal. They were not willing to embark in it ; 
but after more talk they agreed to give it all the assistance 
they possibly could, if the people received the idea favorably, 
and the movement met with favor. 

Mr. Knox then went cheerily to work, and opened a corres- 
pondence with the temperance advocates in Pittsburgh, 
inquiring their mode of conducting movements; if they had 
any special theories w T hat kind of men they would send to 
conduct Murphy meetings in Elmira, and what the expenses 
would be. The answers were all satisfactory, and the arrange- 
ments made. Mr. Eccles Robinson, in company with another 
gentleman, w r ere to be sent from Pittsburgh to conduct the 
movement. The former gentleman was a very recent convert 
of Murphy's, and was commended in so high a manner that 
Mr. Knox and the other parties who had interested themselves 
in the cause were glad he was the one appointed for the 
Elmira work. 

All the arrangements were made for the reception of the 
reformers, every one in the city and vicinity was duly notified 
through the medium of frequent and extensive newspaper 
notices and pulpit announcements ; and considerable interest 
and enthusiasm were fait and manifested. At last informa- 
tion was received from Pittsburgh that Mr. Robinson and his 
companion would arrive in Elmira in due season to open the 



234 THE TRUE PATH ; 

meetings early in the spring time. They were informed that 
the strangers would be in Elmira on March 22. Forth- 
with preparations were made Co give them a reception, 
and to have a gathering of the different members of the laity, 
the prominent persons of the place, and in fact all those inter- 
ested in the glorious cause, in the First Presbyterian Church. 
The night came, and with it an immense concourse of people 
to the church, crowding every nook of that commodious edi- 
fice, filling the aisles and corners untilit was a perfect " jam." 
Such a crowd was cheering, and it was plainly evident that 
the Elmirans were anxious, nay eager, to welcome the Pitts- 
burgh reformers. In the ante-room was displayed a scene 
worthy to be made the subject of a cartoon by the genius of 
Thomas Nast. The reverend gentlemen were gathered to- 
gether and gesticulating in quite an excited manner, their 
faces drawn down to serious length and expressive of the ut- 
most consternation, perplexity and dismay. The time ap- 
pointed for the commencement of the meeting had arrived, 
but no Eccles Robinson nor companion, nobody from Pitts- 
burgh. No information had been received of their arrival in 
the city ; it had been expressly given out that they would 
assuredly be present, and the people had come to welcome 
them. What was to be done ? Mr. Knox in the great emer- 
gency hit upon the only right way out of the dilemma. He 
called his colleagues to him and said : " We must go out to the 
audience now ; we cannot stay here a moment longer. We'll 
go out and commence the meeting and render it as interesting 
as we possibly can, making no mention whatever of Eccles 
Robinson and his co-laborer." They then filed out of the 
ante-room, and ascended the platform. Mr. Knox opened in 
a very happy address, thanking the people for coming so 
largely forward to the call made to them, and asking for 
gospel songs of the most spirited and pleasing order. The 
people entered into the work with great interest and enthu- 
siasm ; the several ministers called upon spoke in their most 
felicitous style — indeed they never spoke better than tbey did 



0E-, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 235 



that night — and time slipped by without any special attention 
being taken of the non-introduction of the reformers. The 
audience evidently were under the supposition that the latter 
were seated with them, and that not being ordained ministers 
of the gospel they did not occupy seats on the platform. 
Finally, when the disappointment could not possibly be kept 
back any longer, the ■ Rev. Mr. Knox rose, and made some 
telling remarks relative to temperance, and closed by saying : 
" But there is one thing that I do not like about it, and it is 
something very disappointing — Eccles Robinson and his fel- 
low-worker are not here. We were told they would be here 
surely ; but they have not arrived. However, you must all 
come again, and the next time we meet the Pittsburgh reform- 
ers will have the floor all to themselves, and the work will 
commence. In the meantime, we will have Brother Clarke's 
speech. He has one prepared especially for this occasion, 
and he is glum enough now because he has not been called 
upon. I think we will now have the address of our Brother 
Clarke." Thus the immense audience was put into a fine 
humor ; and, on the whole, the meeting was one of the most 
interesting and enthusiastic Elmira had ever known. 

After the crowd had dispersed the Rev. Mr. Knox proposed 
to his friends that they should go to the station, and see the 
ten o'clock train come in. Perhaps Eccles Robinson and his 
companion would arrive on that. As they watched the per- 
sons alight from the train they signalled out a young man, 
and went up to him. 

"Are you Mr. Eccles Robinson ?" asked the Rev. Knox. 

" Yes ; I am Eccles Robinson. I have just got here. I ex- 
pected to be here by eight o'clock, and it is now past ten. I 
am all alone. My friends sent me by myself. I do not know 
why they sent me here, I am no orator ; I do not know how 
to conduct meetings. I feel I ought to take the next train 
back home." 

He spoke very despondently, seemed embarrassed, doubtful 
of himself and what he was to do in Elmira, and hesitated 



236 THE TRUE PATH ; 

about staying. The reverend gentlemen reasoned with him, 
and cheered him as best they could. They finally succeeded 
in pursuading him to remain, and make at least one effort to 
carry out a Murphy movement. They despatched a boy with 
him to show him the way to his boarding-place. 

" I wonder what the Pittsburgh people mean by sending us 
such a man," said the Rev. Clarke, as he and his friend were 
walking homeward. " For such a work too* Why, he will 
never be able to do any good, or stir the people in the cause." 

"I am sure there is something in him," rejoined Mr. Knox. 
" The Pittsburgh people would not lie, and they would not 
have written so favorably of him if he were no good. Just 
take this letter from them home with you, and read what they 
say of him. We will give Eccles Robinson a chance anyway. 
I pray he will make great success." 

On Monday evening, March 27, the First Presbyterian 
Church was crowded once more. It had been announced that 
the Murphy converts would appear, and then and there open 
the Murphy temperance meetings. There was not a vacant 
seat in the building, nor was there a nook empty where a 
chair might be placed to advantage. All the clergymen of 
the town were present on the platform, and the prominent 
people were there in close proximity with those that walked 
in the lower ways of life. The excitement was general, when,, 
after a most earnest prayer, and a beautiful gospel song, Mr. 
Knox introduced Eccles Robinson to the audience : the man 
who had come to help them, to save them from the cursed in- 
fluence of King Alcohol. Heads were intently, eagerly in- 
clined to forward, and more than a thousand eyes were fixed 
on one object, while many hands clapped a rousing, cheery 
greeting. They beheld a young man, not over thirty years of 
age, of a very modest and unpretending appearance ; of a 
slight, delicate frame, and on the whole of rather a boyish 
carriage. 

He bowed his acknowledgments to the hearty and pro- 
longed applause in the stiffest, most awkward fashion imagin- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 237 

able, and appeared to be exceedingly embarrassed and ill at 
ease. 

The church suddenly became as quite as a tomb. Every one 
in it was on the qui vive, and waited, while they curiously 
scanned his person, to hear him speak. Every one wondered 
how he would commence, and what he would say. 

Blushing, hanging his head down on his chest, rivetting his 
eyes on the platform, putting his hands in the pockets of his 
trousers, and protruding his arms out in a very awkward way, 
he opened his mouth, and spoke. Never was so large and so 
select an audience called forth to hear the efforts of so em- 
barrassed or shame-faced looking an individual before. The 
people did not know how to take it, they were so very much 
surprised. 

He spoke so timidly and so softly scarcely fifty persons 
could distinctly hear what he said. The place became quieter 
and quieter, so anxious was every one to catch his words. 

"I am no orator," he said, without lifting his eyes. "I do 
not even know how to make a speech of any kind. I do n:>t 
know why they sent me here. There were other men that could 
have done far better than I. I never spoke in public before." 

He paused, and then he raised his head, and looked the 
crowd full in the face, while his face fairly beamed with a look 
that amazed every one before him. " But," he cried in a ring 
ing voice, so clear and distinct that the audience seemed spell- 
bound under it ; "I can ask you to do something. I can ask 
you to come up here and take the pledge. I can tell you that 
it is the only way to be saved from drunkenness, the only way 
to restore you to your lost manhood. I can ask every one of 
you, men and women and children, old and young — every one 
of yon to come here and sign the blessed pledge. There are 
some of you here who are addicted to drink, some who drink 
secretly thinking no one knows it, and some who never touch 
intoxicants. All of you come, and take the pledge. First, 
let all of the ministers come and do so, for example's sake. 
We want them first. Will you come ?" And he continued in 



238 THE TRUE PATH ; 

this strain until the audience lost control of itself, and rushed 
forward to the pledge tables. His talk went through the peo- 
ple like an electric shock. He seemed to be moved by some 
higher power. He lost his embarrassment and his awkwardness. 
He greeted each person that took the ' pledge in the most 
genial way ; and surprised all by his affectionate and affable 
manner. The nervous, frightened man who had stood before 
them but a while since was lost sight of altogether ; and Eccles 
Robinson, genial, strong and lovable, one of the stanchest 
of temperance advocates, took possession of the hearts of the 
Elmirans completely and unreservedly. From that memorable 
night he was, to the day he left, the favorite of Elmira. No 
stranger had ever made so favorable an impression, or suc- 
ceeded in enlisting every one in his favor as he. And he did 
this unconsciously. His work was from the very outset sur- 
prisingly successful. 

The people took the matter up with more zeal and enthu- 
siasm than even those deeply interested in the noble cause 
dreamed of or expected from them. It swept over the place 
like an immense wave, carrying all things before and with 
it. It was the theme of conversation in every part of 
the town, no matter where one went. No one had anything 
to discuss but the subject of total abstinence ; and that was 
discussed at all times and in all places. The churches entered 
largely into the excitement, and did nobly. Meetings were' 
held three and four times a day. In a short space of time it 
was found absolutely necessary that a local committee should 
be organized to conduct the work. It was utterly impossible 
to go on with it unless there was some such organization ; so 
the temperance advocates met, and formed a local committee, 
of which the Rev. W. E. Knox was unanimously elected presi- 
dent. 

Here was the right man in the right place. Their choice of 
a president could not have been more wise ; and most nobly 
and successfully did he occupy and fulfill his very important 
position. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 239 



The temperance wave swept over the whole town, and ex- 
tended to the neighboring places. The churches were soon 
found perfectly incapable of containing the great crowds that 
rushed to hear the telling words that fell like so many spark- 
ling drops of healing water from the lips of Eccles Robinson. 
Some building large enough to accommodate all who came to 
hear him must be engaged ; so the Opera House, the largest 
auditorium in Elmira, was called into use, and answered the 
purpose admirably. The crowds that filled this edifice were 
vast. Hours before the meetings commenced the street was 
thronged, blockaded, in fact, by excited people, who willingly 
stood their ground until the doors were flung open- to them. 
It was hardly safe to be in the rush when the doors were 
opened ; and if you escaped with only a sore feeling and 
rather dishevelled appearance, it was a piece of .good fortune. 

In this building scenes were enacted that might fill a large 
duodecimo volume with highly interesting matter of every 
phase, from the pathetic to the humorous, and from the grave 
to the inspired. The people were carried entirely away with 
the movement as they had been in other places, and responded 
to the call to free themselves from the evil of intoxicating 
drink in a manner that was more than surprising, arousing the 
most callous and indifferent into positive enthusiasm, and com- 
pelling them to do likewise. Little children would harry to 
the pledge tables and sign the pledge ; women and men pressed 
forward eagerly to annex their signatures. Men tottering near 
the grave, with hair and beard white as the driven snow with 
Time's touch, would rise, and confess to listening multitudes 
that they had had an intimate association with King Alcohol 
for upwards of thirty or forty years ; and rejoiced greatly now 
at being able to say they saw the right and only way to hap- 
piness and prosperity, and were able to testify to the manifold 
pains and trials a strong appetite for liquor had brought home 
to them. Men flushed with youth and glowing manhood 
would take the pledge and promise to keep it> their eyes, unac- 
customed to tears, wet. and downcast, and go to their happy 



240 THE TEUE PATH ; 

mothers or wives with fast throbbing heart and joyful 
mien. 

Such scenes were never witnessed in the city of Elmira 
before ; and it is little wonder that the whole place was so 
affected, roused to the wildest enthusiasm and excitement. In 
one week there were 1,886 signers of the Murphy pledge. 
Thus, it will be readily comprehended what a great movement 
it was, and how heartily the people embraced it. Undoubtedly 
the presence of God was with it from first to last. 

One evening the list of signers was unrolled before an im- 
mense audience in the Opera House. It was sixty feet long, 
and reached more than half way across the stage ; and some 
portion of the paper was written on both sides. What a 
burst of applause was sent up at the sight. 

The interest and enthusiasm in the temperance wave was not 
wholly confined to Elmira ; but extended to all the neighbor- 
ing towns, creating the same results as in other places. In the 
town of Corning the enthusiasm was intense. Four hundred 
and twenty persons signed the pledge one evening at this 
place ; and in a few weeks there were seven hundred on the 
list. At Jamestown the total number was 5,066 ; and two 
weeks only in the town of Havana secured 390 signers. Hor- 
nellsville in two evenings had 1,000 names appended to the 
pledge. The population of Tioga County is 40,000 ; there 
were 30,000 persons who took the pledge. In Elmira there 
were over 7,000 signers. These statistics show what a re- 
markable work it was. Never had such an universal excitement 
been known in that region of New York State ; and it has not 
ceased yet to be a wonder to all who calmly consider the mat- 
ter in all its phases. It was as if God had sent the movement 
there, and caused all to recognize it in its true character. It 
was esteemed an honor to be a pledge-taker, and a privilege to 
attend the meetings. The different clergymen did great work, 
and pushed the movement on extensively. The local reformed 
men were able eo-iaborers. 

The two prominent local figures in the crowd that gathered 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 241 

round Eccles Robinson, and assisted him in his grand and 
good work, were W. H. Maxwell, better known as " Billy," 
and Colonel Luther Caldwell, the former proprietor of the 
Rathbun House. The former gentleman is connected with the 
Elmira Advertiser. He springs from one of the oldest and 
most aristocratic families of southern New York, a family- 
noted at home and abroad for their ability, wealth and high 
social position. His father had been an honorable representa- 
tive at Washington, and was a man esteemed for the noble 
qualities of both his mind and person. " Billy's" home was 
one of the most beautiful and comfortable in the whole sec- 
tion. He received all the educational advantages wealth could 
procure ; and every wish he expressed was gratified. Early in 
life, when he was but a child, he contracted a strong taste for 
intoxicating liquors, which eventually proved his ruin. Not- 
withstanding the position his family occupied and the honor- 
able name he bore, he commenced a life of recklessness, and 
led it for certainly twenty-five years or more. There was not 
a person in Elmira or vicinity as low or as degraded as he 
was. From his high position he sank to such a low depth that 
society could not notice him in any way. It was almost an 
hourly occurrence to see him reeling through the streets under 
the influence of liquor. His devoted wife's prayers and tears 
seemed to be of no avail ; but she never gave way to despair. 
She would follow him from place to place, and scarcely ever 
let him out of her sight. Finally, after many years of patient 
waiting, she received her reward — he came to realize the awful 
results of the course he was pursuing, and promised her to try 
and abstain. That was about a year and a half before Eccles 
Robinson came to Elmira and started the Murphy movement 

When, however, the movement was started, he entered into 
it with all his heart and soul, and gave up everything so that 
he might work zealously in the cause, and further its success. 

No one was so prominent, after Eccles Robinson, in the 
Elmira movement as he ; and no one was more successful. His 
speeches were forcible, attractive, and telling ; and the an- 



242 THE TRUE PATH ; 

nouncement of his name was sufficient inducement to attract 
an immense crowd to hear him. The good he has done in El- 
mira and the neighboring towns cannot be possibly estimated; 
but the name of " Billy " Maxwell will live forever in the 
minds of hundreds who were led by him into the only true path. 

" I was drunk thirty years/' says Maxwell, in one of his 
temperance lectures. " I have had the delirium tremens six 
times, and been in a county jail in every State in the Union 
but six, for drunkenness." It was through his efforts that not 
a drunken man was seen in Hornellsville, at the time of the 
Erie strike. 

Col. Luther Caldwell became deeply interested in the tem- 
perance movement in Elmira, and worked steadily in it side by 
side with Eecles Robinson and W. E. Maxwell. He gave up 
the Rathbun House, so th at his time could be only devoted to 
the cause of temperance ; and he is now going from place to 
place to address people on the subject. On one occasion he 
read the following letter from his daughter, to one of the 
largest audiences that ever filled the Opera House, and re- 
ceived a perfect storm of applause : 

Washington City, April 3, 1877. 
My dear, dear Father : 

Oh ! I am so glad to hear of your signing the pledge. It 
was a blessed good thing to do, and a good day to do it on. 
Pa, there is one thing else that I want you to do, that is to 
join the church. You can do so. You do believe Jesus died 
for you. You know he did, and all that you or any one else 
can do is just to believe that, and strive with all their might 
and God's help to do right, and not to do anything wrong. I 
just hope that the next time I hear from you that shall be the 
good news I shall hear. I have been praying for it for almost 
a year now, and I know I shall get an answer some time to 
that prayer. God will bless you for what you did on Sunday. 
I. am so glad. I hope and believe Cush and the boys will fol- 
low your good example. With lots of love, 

Your daughter, Lena Cushing. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 243 

The colonel said in one of his temperance addresses 
that he was willing to tell what had prompted him to 
come out for total abstinence. He had made up his mind 
that it was about time for him to stop drinking. He had felt 
that it was in the very air, for some time, a kind of strange 
influence. He had not been one to stand back when invited 
up to the bar — on the contrary, he had been rather inclined to 
"keep up his end of the log." He had with others practiced 
drinking, the while feeling sorry to see the intemperance. He 
presumed the rest of his friends were thinking about the same 
way. He spoke of the continued resolutions he had made to 
stop drinking, but he could not keep a promise made to him- 
self, wife and friends. The days on which he struggled hard- 
est to refrain, he drank the most. But when he went up, 
marching down before a whole audience in Elmira, to sign the 
pledge, he knew he could keep it. That was the open avowal. 
Moderate drinkers become immoderate, and the immoderate 
become drunkards. There was no argument about it ; it was 
simply a matter of will. He knew he was on the road to 
drunkenness, and so he signed his name to the Murphy pledge. 
" With Malice towards none, and Charity for all," and 
"clothed in his right mind," he went into the movement 
and took up the banner of temperance, and began to walk in 
the way made so straight, clear and shining by the noble host 
of men who had gone before. 

Colonel Caldwell has turned his hand to song writing. 
The following fairly illustrates his literary style, and also 
the conspicuousness of the blue-ribbon insignia in the move* 
ment : 

" God helping me," the drinker said, 
And trembling signed the Murphy pledge. 
Poor Peter cried, " Oh! Jesus, save, 
-^ Or else I sink beneath the wave ! " 

Oh ! blessed pledge, oh, holy word I 
It has in sorrow oft been heard. 



244 * THE TEUE PATH ; 

The Saviour lifts poor Peter up 
And saves the drinker from his cup, 
" God helping me," by faith I cry, 
And the dear Saviour cometh nigh ; 

So the blue-ribbon which we wear 

Shall be a signal and a prayer. 

The loving hand, dear Jesus, give, 

And bid the fallen brother live. 

Oh ! gracious Lord, come near each day, 

To lead us in the better way ; 

And the blue-ribbon e'er shall be 
A signal that c t God is helping me." 

Another earnest worker in the cause was Mr. Pattison. 
Reformed through the influence of Eccles Robinson lie entered 
the lists and did untold good. His name has become known 
to all. The employees of the Erie railroad signed the pledge, 
as well as those of the post-office, in the earlier days of the 
movement, and were greeted with deafening applause and 
cheers. 

The " 76 " Social Club, composed of the leading young men 
of the place, followed the good examples, and signed the 
pledge in a body. Thirty members of the Hook and Ladder, 
and one hundred and twelve Odd Fellows were not to be 
beaten, and did likewise. 

The following telling speech was made by an Elmiran in 
the Opera House : 

" Two weeks ago I was drinking myself drunk in a saloon 
in Elmira. I called for still another glass and the saloon 
keeper said, i Young man, you have had enough, you had better 
go and sign the Murphy pledge.' I took him at his word, and 
walked out with his warning ringing in his ears. I signed the 
pledge, and such joy as I have known for two weeks ! But I 
feel that I need something that is still higher and better. 
Pray for me that I may become a true Christian." 

One of the most interesting features of the movement was 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 245 

the Sundav service Messrs. Kenfield and Farwell conducted, a 
temperance meeting in the jail for the benefit of the prisoners. 
Out of the twenty-five confined men seventeen signed the 
pledge. There was no blue ribbon to give the poor fellows ; 
so the ladies who were present kindly cut enough of the color 
from what they wore. In this way there was found 
sufficient of that "true" color to adorn the ugly prison 
apparel. 

Before many weeks had passed it was found to be an im- 
perative matter that a permanent place should be rented where 
temperance could have a home. All the leading gentlemen 
and ladies entered into the spirit of the thing ; and the result 
of the several meetings was that the hall, corner of Lake and 
Carroll streets, was secured for the much desired purpose. 
The ladies decorated the hall neatly and tastefully with appro- 
priate mottoes. On one side of the room the eye was drawn to 
" Malice towards none and Charity for all," worked in ever- 
greens ; and on another side iC Blessed are the Poor in Spirit." 
Above the platform was hung a most faithful and excellent 
portrait, handsomely framed, of Eccles Robinson, the father 
of the Elmira movement. An elegant water-cooler of britan- 
nia ware, and a silver vase of unique design standing on a 
walnut bracket under the portrait, added to the place a certain 
nameless grace and charm, very suggestive of woman's beauti- 
fying presence. Here was the home and the headquarters of 
temperance, and the scene of the labors of its earnest and 
valiant advocates. Meetings were here held four and some- 
times six times a day, meetings ripe in promise and fruition, 
and which will always form an important part of the Elmira 
annals. 

The interest and enthusiasm became of so intense a char- 
acter, as the movement progressed, that demands had to be 
made on the " Smoky City " for more reformers. The call 
was heartily responded to, and men were sent who did a vast 
deal of good. There was, however, a longing desire to see 
and hear the great man who had originated this wave. There 



246 THE TEUE PATH ; 

was an universal cry for Francis Murphy. In almost every 
speech made to the people, his name was mentioned with the 
most loving and reverend of tones ; and Eccles Robinson 
would say, continually : " You all should see the man who 
reformed me. He is so good, so grand." At last arrange- 
ments were completed to bring him in their midst. The 
Young Men's Christian Association engaged him to deliver a 
lecture at the Opera House. Early in the month of May the 
following characteristic letter was received from the great 
temperance apostle : 

" My dear Brother : — Your favor is at hand. It is all right 
for Elmira, Tuesday, May 22. God help you. Will let you 
know to-morrow by what train I shall arrive in your city on 
Monday night. Love to all the people. 

" P. S. The work goes bravely on in Philadelphia. 

"Francis Murphy." 

This announcement was made to the people, and caused 
general excitement. Every one was on the alert to see the 
man who had made so great a stir in society, and was spoken 
of wherever one went, and whose name was a constant theme 
for newspaper gossip. 

He came, and completely conquered. The Opera House was 
crowded ; and the lecturer was received with great fervor. He 
told in his usual, and so well known way, the story of his life, 
eliciting tears and sobs in one breath, and roars of laughter in 
another. A most touching incident of the evening was the 
reply he made to a gentleman in the audience who asked him 
if his mother lived to witness his reformation. When the 
great reformer said no, but told sadly of his mother's death 
shortly after her arrival in this country, whither she had come 
to see her dear boy, there was many a tear escaped from the 
control of its possessor, and hard were the efforts made to 
keep back the flowing tide of sympathy. He stormed the 
town ; and the demand was so great to hear him that he was 
obliged to visit Elmira again, which he did Tuesday, June 
20. On both occasions he made a most favorable and 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 247 

marked impression. He, however, was not the father of the 
Elmira movement ; he only delivered a few addresses to the 
thousands who went to hear him. All honor and praise must 
be credited to Eccles Robinson. It was purely and wholly his 
work from first to last. The people accepted him as their re- 
former ; . and he proved himself that. It will be interesting to 
here tell the kind reader how Eccles Robinson was converted. 
We will quote his own graphic words : 

" There were four young men just beginning the study of 
law in Pittsburg. They were all of them members of families 
of respectability and property, with fair talents and good pros- 
pects. One evening one of them said, 'Let us have a bottle of 
wine together. 5 Another said, ' Boys, who knows, if we should, 
how it will interfere with our studies. May be will not get as 
far as the practice of the law T They laughed and sent for 
the wine. While drinking and beginning to feel good, an old 
beggar put his head within the door and asked them for some 
money. They rallied him for his appearance and interruption 
of their festivities, but tossed him a small piece of coin, and as 
he turned away, he said : i Young man, the time may come 
when you will be around begging for a dime, as I am to-night.' 

" And as sure as one bottle after another came to their rooms 
did that time come to those young men. Three of them lie 
to-night in drunkards' graves ; one of them still reels about 
the streets of Pittsburgh. I only am escaped out of the depths 
of drunkenness to tell you this true story. Young men, come 
up here and sign the pledge. It is better to sign the Murphy 
pledge than to wallow in the ditch or lie down on saw-dust 
floors." 

Eccles Robinson was a member of one of the oldest and 
most influential Pennsylvania families. He entered the col- 
lege at Princeton, and after being there a short while was ex- 
pelled on account of his wild spirits. 

He commenced to drink when quite young, and soon got en- 
tirely under the influence of liquor. He became well known in 
the " Smoky City " as one of the worst, if not the worst, 



248 THE TRUE PATH ; 

drunkards in the whole place. While he was drinking in a 
saloon one day, a gentleman entered, and looking around the 
room, saw him. He approached him, and asked politely : 

" Are you Mr. Eccles Robinson ? " 

Mr. Robinson felt as if some one had shaken him. It wa? 
the first time in many a long day that he had been kindly 
spoken to ; the first time in years he was addressed as " Mr." 

"Yes ; I am Eccles Robinson," he said shortly, more to hide 
his feelings than anything else. 

" I want you to come to my meetings," the gentleman said 
kindly ; " I am Francis Murphy. Will you come ? " 

"No." 

" But I want you to come. It will do you good, and you 
will like it. Wouldn't you like to be as you were before you 
commenced drinking ? " 

" Yes ; I would." And something rose up in the breast of 
Eccles Robinson, and dimmed his eyes. His conscience 
awoke. A few kind words had done the work. Ah, a gentle 
word is a powerful thing when used to those who have been 
strangers to it ! It was seldom that Eccles Robinson was 
spoken to thus. " You will be restored to your manhood," 
said Mr. Murphy earnestly ; " and all will be well with you if 
you only sign my pledge. Come to me to-night ? " 

The promise was given. That evening Mr. Murphy looked 
for his friend in the hall, and found him. Never had he flung 
so much fervor in his work as he did that night. Eccles Robin- 
son was aroused, amazed ; and realized his present position. 
He plainly saw what frightful risks he ran, and what an awful 
end awaited him. He signed the pledge. As he did so Mr, 
Murphy stooped down, held out his hand, and said : 

" I want you to come up here beside me." The new convert 
went on the stage. "I want you to tell- the people 
your experience," he said. The convert looked at the 
sea of faces, and shrank back frightened and embar- 
rassed. He could not do it. " Then kneel down, and pray 
to God to help you keep your pledge." "I can't." "Don't 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 249 

you want to keep it ? " " Yes." " Well, then, pray." Eccles 
Robinson had not said a prayer for a number of years. The 
time when he used to kneel and pray to God seemed as some 
strange dream. He knelt down ; and with wildly throbbing 
heart, before that immense crowd of peoj)le, begged the 
Heavenly assistance and protection. It was a simple little 
prayer. The audience was so hushed you could almost count 
your heart-beats. From that never-to-be-forgotten night 
the desire for intoxicating drink left him ; and Eccles Robin- 
son was a saved man — snatched from the road of sin to walk 
along the way of right and truth, to save and redeem others 
from a dreadful end. He entered so completely into the warm 
affection of the Elmirans that before he left them for other 
fields of usefulness they agreed to tender him a benefit. He 
had not been paid for his work among them ; it had been 
purely a matter of duty and love. 

The occasion was a most interesting one. A great crowd 
greeted him ; many felicitous speeches were made ; and it was 
altogether a most joyous and delightful evening. He was pre- 
sented, among other "good" things, with a very elegant gold 
cross — an appropriate gift, as he had taken it up and was 
walking under its gracious load straight towards the golden 
gates of heaven. " May the richest blessings of God rest upon 
Eccles Robinson," is the prayer to-day of the people of Elmira. 

The temperance wave reached Utica, 1ST. Y., and swept over 
it with grand results, as the following article graphically shows : 

" The temperance tidal wave has reached Utica. This is 
evident to every one who has noticed the crowd attending the 
temperance lectures at Mechanics' Hall nightly, and the blue 
ribbons worn upon the street. Saturday evening another large 
meeting was held at Mechanics' Hall. Prof. Evans spoke to 
workingmen especially, his subject being "Saturday Night.'* 
He dwelt particularly on the folly shown by many in working 
hard all the week, and spending the fruit of their labor in 
drink in a few short hours on Saturday night. The good re* 
suits of signing the pledge and turning the week's earnings 



250 THE TETTE PATH ; 

into their proper channel were also shown. After the address 
about one hundred signatures to the temperance pledge were 
obtained. 

" The temperance meeting at the Opera House, yesterday 
afternoon, was a source of surprise to everybody. It had been 
announced to begin at 3:30 P. M., but at that time every seat 
in the house was filled, all standing room in the aisles and 
around the side of the room, both on the lower floor and gal- 
lery, was occupied, while a large number found seats on the 
stage. From 3:30 to 4 P. M., hundreds of people came to the 
hall, only to be turned away for want of room. Over two 
thousand persons were present. Revs. L. D. White, R. G. 
Jones, Rev. Dr.- P. II. Fowler and Captain L. Moore, of Utica, 
and Rev. J. II. Lamb, of Madison, occupied seats on the stage. 
The meeting was opened with singing and brief remarks by 
Rev. L. D. White. Prof. Evans read the parable of the prod- 
igal son, putting an earnestness seldom heard into his words. 
He then proceeded to speak on the subject, dwelling especially 
on the sin of drunkenness. His mission, he said, was to try 
and arouse a sentiment that shall bring prodigals to themselves 
and home. He explained the parable of the prodigal son, in 
simple yet earnest, and often beautiful language, applying the 
lesson at different points to those who act the same part to-day. 
The base ingratitude of the prodigal was shown by a picture 
of a young man leaving home, depicted in well-chosen ^vords_, 
showing the depth of filial affection. The downfall of a 
young man living a fast life was also vividly portrayed. The 
prodigal of old, after his fall, would fain fill himself with the 
husks the swine did eat. The prodigal to-day having spent 
his money in riotous living, his friends cut him, and he waits 
around on the outside of the crowd to be asked to drink. He 
is also after husks. When his money is gone he is told he may 
sweep out the saloon for his drink; he has become a swineherd, 
The prodigal of old was too noble to steal, too manly to beg, 
and had sense enough to realize his position and resolve to go 
back to his father's house and make the best of it. The 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 251 

father's anxiety over his absence and joy at his return were 
forcibly presented in words and gestures. Like the brother 
who was angered at the reception given to the prodigal, there 
are many to-day, who, if they cannot be at the head of a pro- 
ject when invited to participate, turn and say, c I won't.' Oh, 
for a time when we can forget sectional differences ! ' We 
ask you all, irrespective of creed or belief, to join this move- 
ment. We desire the co-operation of the churches to bring 
those who are without into the fold. It is a glorious work for 
humanity. Every man who is saved begins to live aright. He 
pays his debts and his money goes into proper channels. 
Every man who is reformed, is saved for the community and 
church as well as for himself. Give us your hand, your heart 
and your voice to aid in this movement. The work will have 
to be taken up and carried forward in a systematic manner. 
It is my prayer that the work may go forward until every man 
in the city shall stand on a higher plane than he did before.' 

" James 6. Clark sang one of his songs, and in response to 
an encore sang ' Ninety and Nine.' 

" Rev. L. D. White then spoke in relation to the continuance 
of the meetings. He said that in obedience to public senti- 
ment, meetings would be held in the Opera House every even- 
ing this week, with the exception of Wednesday, when the 
house will be otherwise occupied. The meetings have been 
inaugurated on the conviction that there is a sentiment, will 
and money in the community to carry them on. 

" Mr. Clark sang a temperance song, * Dare to Say No,' which 
was enthusiastically applauded. 

" Those desiring to do so were invited to come and sign the 
pledge, and 250 responded to the invitation, making 350 sig- 
natures obtained in two days. 

" There will be a temperance prayer-meeting at the Opera 
House, between 12 and 1 P. M., to-day. Entrance, for thia 
session only, will be through the Washington street stairway. 
The movement is increasing in popularity from day to day." 

William M. Evans was the main worker of the Utica tern 



252 THE TEUE PATH ; 

perance movement. Sent here from the headquarters he 
worked nobly ; but we will let the gentleman himself give 
the kind reader an idea of his success in a letter of his to the 
Pittsburgh Temperance Ensign : 

"Utica, K Y. 

"Editor Ensign : — I have been here now six weeks to-night, 
and have secured over 6,000 signers. The enthusiasm is in- 
tense. Some nights I have been compelled to attend three 
meetings, being driven from one to another, and people fol- 
lowing. I expect to organize a central union and four or five 
auxiliaries during the coming weeek, and intend to keep the 
fires burning over the holidays, when I shall have to leave the 
unions to take care of themselves. I have engagements to 
lecture in Dunkirk, Titusville, and many places in New York. 
I may be with you for one night. I had a grand benefit on 
Wednesday night, over 1,100 people being present. I had 
splendid floral offerings. I am getting invitations for next 
winter's lecture course, John B. Gough voluntarily indorsed 
me here and at Rome, and the lecture committee have told 
me I must take his place next season, as he will be in Europe. 
I have my lectures under preparation. I am writing this after 
having spoken one hour and secured over 200 signers. To- 
morrow evening I shall have an audience of over 2,000 in the 
Opera House, and I shall present the claims of the Union. I 
am pleased to read your paper's goodly news of temperance, and 
hope the good cause will steadily go on until our land shall 
be free from the curse of alcohol. Wm. Mason Evans." 

We take pleasure in placing the following very interesting 
account before our readers as it graphically tells of the glori- 
ous work in the city of Utica, and gives a faithful idea of the 
reception the people gave the cause. We print these fresh 
and living photographs of the grand effects of the Murphy 
reform, because, written on the spot, they arc instinct with the 
feeling and atmosphere, which transfigured society into some- 
thing brighter and better, and paint with more glowing color, 
than could any resume of ours, the strength and depth of the 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 253 

impulse that shook all classes to the center. The Utica Herald 
contained a sketch of a " Thanksgiving," as sweet and touch- 
ing, almost, in its simple realism, as one of Charles Dickens' 
exquisite Christmas stories : 

" Yesterday was a Thanksgiving to be long remembered by- 
many in Utica. It was cold, rainy, snowy and cheerless with- 
out, but within door innumerable happy events occurred. The 
attendance at the churches was much larger than usual and 
the sermons were quite interesting. 

" Thanks to the happy thought of Prof. Evans, the indefati- 
gable efforts of the Women's Christian Temperance Union, 
and the Utica Reform Club, and aided by the generosity of 
citizens generally, nearly two thousand poor men, women and 
children enjoyed as hearty a Thanksgiving dinner as they 
could possibly desire. The Blue-ribbon Brigade, smiling and 
happy, with their young lady friends, joined hearts and hands 
with the members of the Women's Christian Temperance 
Union, at an early hour, yesterday morning. Soon after the 
vast assembly room in the Carton Block was besieged with 
big-hearted men, women and children bearing baskets full of 
everything good to eat ; from turkeys and tarts down to pies, 
pickles and pippins. They came from the homes of the 
wealthy and the cottages of the mechanics and laborers ; and 
but of the scanty stores of many a poor wife, widow and sew- 
ing girl, were carried humble gifts that would overweigh the 
product dollars of the rich in the scale of genuine charity. 
They were heart tributes of gratitude to the glorious cause of 
temperance reform, which has lifted great burdens of sorrow 
and grief from their homes by the reformation of heretofore 
unfortunate husbands, sons or brothers ; men who were down 
in the mire last Thanksgiving, with no certainty of getting a 
dinner for themselves and careless whether their families ate 
or starved, joined the throng and added their gifts to the 
bountiful feast prepared for others less fortunate. The amount 
and variety of the delicacies and substantiate that were piled 
up in the east end of Carton Hall was really surprising. Three 



254 THE TEUE PATH ; 

tables were set nearly the whole length of the hall, and in the 
east end were stationed a corps of skillful amateur carvers and 
busy ladies, who labored only as kind-hearted men and women 
can labor in a good caiise. It is impossible and useless to give 
the bill of fare — suffice to say that no first-class hotel in Utica 
or elsewhere gave its guests a better or more palatable dinner. 

" A reporter of the Herald dropped into the hall at 1 o'clock 
P. M.,one hour before the time announced for the feast, but — 
dinner was ready. Such a sight has never before been seen in 
Utica. It was one that would warm the heart of a miser, and 
compel even the rumseller to throw up his hat and bid God 
speed to the temperance reform workers. It was a practical 
demonstration of the fact that temperance reform means good 
to all— warm clothing over light hearts and good dinners to 
take the wrinkles out of lean and hungry stomachs. 

" The grown people, white and black, old men and women, 
residents and strangers, red-nosed bottle tipplers and pale 
poverty-stricken people, ate only as hungry people can eat when 
they have plenty, but the fun came in where the boys and 
girls were. Boot-blacks, newsboys, peanut peddlers, street 
Arabs of every nationality, color and creed had a harvest, 
Shivering, half clad, bare-footed, sorrel-topped, wan, pale, thin, 
cadaverous, pinched, sunken-cheeked, half-starved boys and 
girls reveled in turkey, goose, duck, cranberry sauce, mince 
pies, cake, doughnuts, puddings, apples, oranges, coffee, tea, 
milk, and water till they nearly burst. The kind matrons, 
rosy-cheeked and bright-eyed young ladies, and jovial members 
of the Reform Club followed Bob Ingersoll's rule — just for 
once — and let the gamin commence their dinner with pie, or 
finish it with turkey 01 chicken, just as they pleased. They 
were not restricted in any way, and to their credit be it said, 
they behaved one hundred per cent, better than the average 
attendants at c opening nights,' or lunch fiends in a bar- 
room. Plow they did eat ! And how it pleased the smiling 
spectators to see the urchins cram. One Arab with a patch on 
his nose and radiant in a summer duster, half a shirt and two- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 255 

thirds of a pair of pantaloons, covered a piece of mince pie 
with one dirty hand, and a lump of pound cake with the other, 
while he was grinding the brown meat on the drum of a turkey 
with his teeth. A busier or more interested lad was never 
seen. Then when he began to wrestle with the pie there was 
fun. After making two goodly-sized half -moon indications in 
the side, his appetite gave out. He picked up four big fat 
raisins, the left hand bearing the pie dropped involuntarily to 
the table, the lad leaned back in the chair and a deathly pallor 
spread over his face. That boy had evidently eaten too much, 
or as they say down South, he had ' bitten off more than he 
could chaw !' Prof. Evans and his good wife, Mrs. Northrup, 
President of the Woman's Union, President Latimore of the 
Reform Club, and their coadjutors were ubiquitous. The work 
went on from noon until dark. At least 2,000 were fed, and 
hundreds of baskets full of good provisions were sent out to 
worthy people, the sick poor, who could not come. What is 
left will be distributed from the Court street Home around the 
city by the ladies to-day. 

" Expert writers were kept busy filling up pledges and nimble 
fingers pinned blue ribbons on to 400 persons yesterday. Don't 
ask — ' How many of them will keep it ? ' but f ollow suit and 
do what you can to help the weak to stand by their pledges 
and be true to their manhood. 

" 'Did you have a good dinner ? ' inquired & Herald reporter 
of three wee Arabs who sat on a pile of lumber by the new 
station-house. ' Have a good dinner ? ' they replied. ' Guess 
we did have a bully dinner, but we're so sick ! ' They need 
not have told this, for their pale faces showed it, and their un- 
buttoned jackets proved that the pitcher had gone to the well 
too often. In spite of being sick, they were eager in their 
chase for the stump of a discarded cigar. It didn't hurt them 
to get sick as long as they had one good square Thanksgiving 
dinner. They may go hungry to-day, but they had a ' bully 
dinner ' (inelegant but full of meaning to the boys) yesterday. 

That is what about everybody said who enjoyed yesterday's 



256 THE TKUE PATH; 

good work. Not one-tenth of our practical Christians enjoyed 
the experiment of yesterday. Some thought there wouldn't be 
anything to eat, and others that there would be no one to eat- 
what they did have. Now that Prof. Evans and the temper- 
ance ladies have opened the ball, let it be kept rolling and end 
up with another old-fashioned Christmas dinner for the poor. 
Some who were not poor ate at Carton Hall yesterday, but 
many of the hardest workers among the men and women were 
so anxious to helpi others that they forgot to eat their own 
dinners, and that equalized things. 'Let scallawags eat, if 
they wish,' said Professor Evans, c as long as the worthy and 
hungry have enough.' " 

The Hornellsville Times said : 

"The blue-ribbon cure is better than blue glass. It re- 
moves pain from the heart, dizziness from the head, splinters 
from the eyes and straightens the hair. Not only this, but it 
is a specific for melancholy and brooding diseases of the 
mind, afflicting whole families. 

" At Olean, the daughter of a man who signed the pledge 
and put on the blue ribbon, went dancing along the street say- 
ing to every one she met, ' Oh, I'm so glad, so glad, I don't 
know what to do. My father has signed the pledge, and 
mother's glad, and I am so glad ! Now we are just as good 
as anybody, and so is my father, too. Oh, goody, goody !' , 
and she danced along the street telling the good news to 
every schoolmate that her sick father had been cured of a 
loathsome disease. And here in Hornellsville last Saturday 
night a husband and father clothed in his right mind for the 
first time in many years, went to one of our stores with money 
in his pocket, and bought stockings for his children and other 
articles for himself and wife. It was the blue ribbon that 
did it. It was the blue-ribbon cure." 

This touching epistle appeared in the Oneida Dispatch, 
N. Y. : 

" Dear Friends : — I have thought as I sat and listened to 
the various statements and appeals which have been made at 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 257 

these meetings, that too little has been said in regard to that 
kind of dissipation styled c moderate drinking.' 

" I have often heard men say, c Oh ! I am not a drunkard ; 
I take a glass now and then, but I don't get drunk.' It seems 
to me that there Mes a peculiar danger. It is as if one should 
venture in a frail boat among the rapids, just above the mighty 
cataract of Niagara, and shutting their eyes and ears to the 
grand spectacle and the deafening roar should say as the little 
boat neared the fearful precipice * I am not in danger ! I am 
only taking a row on the river ! I shall not go over !' 

" Oh ! my friends ! not more surely will that little boat with 
its living freight go down to a dreadful death than will the 
moderate drinker become eventually a drunkard, blight his 
home, break the hearts of his friends and wreck the promise 
of his early manhood. 

u Among all the accounts related here, I have heard but 
little of the sorrows of the wives of moderate drinkers ; and 
since it has been my unfortunate lot to be one of these, I have 
felt it my duty to give you a brief sketch of my life. 

" I have always kept my trouble to myself, confiding in 
none but God. 

" When I was married, there was no happier and prouder 
bride, and there never was a better and kinder husband than 
mine until he began to drink ; and now I have nothing to 
complain of when he is not under the influence of liquor. 

" But how can I tell you the sorrow and agony I have felt 
to see my dear husband trail his manhood in the dust, come 
home to me in the small hours of the morning — drunk ! 

" How many such vigils as mine are kept ? How many 
weeping wives have c watched the stars out,' waiting in an 
agony of fear, to hear the unsteady step, and senseless speech, 
of the man who she vowed to love and honor. Ah, me ! were 
women not as true and faithful as they are, how would love 
and honor pale and die as the wife — heart-broken and ashamed 
■—looks for the first time on her beloved husband — drunk ! 

" Oh, moderate drinker ! taking 'only a glass now and then,' 



258 THE TRUE PATH ; 

pause now — set down the glass untasted — go and get a blue 
ribbon and go home to your wife and children a manly man — 
one from which they shall not shrink in fear and disgust. 

" Every week the papers are filled with the heartrending 
details of wives and children beaten cruelly, or murdered in a 
drunken fury, by men who, doubtless, once took c only a glass 
now and then.' 

" The first glass ! to what does it not lead ? Another, and 
another ! and the hard earned dollars melt like the snowflake ! 
Then in his desperation, seeing his family's distress and suffer- 
ing, the unhappy man resorts to the gaming table ! He loses ! 
and drinks to drown his disappointment, and the paling morn- 
ing star sees him rolling home to find perhaps a child, a wife 
dying or dead ! 

" I am sure my husband did not mean to drink again when 
he knelt one night, with sobs and tears, beside our dying child, 
but the tempter was too powerful, and again he fell, and the 
night watches have been repeated while my aching heart was 
well nigh broken. 

" But now — thanks to those noble men, Messrs. McCurry 
and McMaster, who have striven so earnestly and well to 
rescue and raise the fallen ; and thanks to God for putting it 
in their hearts to come to Gneida — my dear husband wears 
the 'blue ribbon,' and I ask the prayers of all in our behalf, 
that he may be steadfast, and not yield again to the accursed 
tempter. 

" I have always worked hard, and am neither afraid nor 
ashamed. My husband would tell you I have been a good 
wife and a helper, and now my one wish and desire is to keep 
our happy home unsullied, and to go down the hill of life 
hand-in-hand together, and when death comes, trusting in 
God's mercy, we may go together to meet our darling child. 

" I pray God to give my husband, and all like him (and 
there have been only too many of these in Oneida), to give 
him strength to keep the pledge for the rest of his life. 

" And if this brief sketch shall open the eyes of anyone 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 259 

who takes ' only a glass now and then,' to the insidious 
danger lurking in that, and lead him to stop ?iow, and don the 
' blue ribbon ' lo-nic/ht, I shall have my reward. 

" May God grant it, is the heartfelt prayer of 

"One of the Wives." 

So the good work went on without any abatement through 
Southern New York, each town of any importance feeling in 
some degree the force of the movement which was sweeping 
through the country. It is stated in rough estimate that at 
least a hundred thousand people throughout these southern 
counties of the Empire State became reformed. The charge 
so often made that only a small number of the Murphy con- 
verts " stick " is false and malignant. On excellent authority 
it is claimed that a fair proportion of two-thirds remain true 
to the solemn pledges taken. Before f ollowing Francis Murphy 
to other sections of the field, we give our readers a speech 
made by the great reformer before a religious convention in 
Western New York. 

Saturday, August 4, 1877, was the opening day. of the 
fourth annual session of the Chatauqua Assembly. The beau- 
tiful groves were thronged with delighted visitors, all of 
whom were very curious and anxious to attend the lecture by 
Francis Murphy, the great apostle of temperance. In the 
afternoon Eccles Robinson, who had so suddenly done such 
great work in Elmira, was introduced, and delivered an inter- 
estina; account of his life* 

The Rev. Mr. Mead, of Horn ells ville, K Y., followed him 
with a graphic narrative of the movement in the southern tier 
of counties in his State. 

Francis Murphy was then introduced by the Rev. Dr. Vin- 
cent, and received a g-rand welcome. After the deafening ap- 
plause had died away, he advanced and said : 

" Mr. President and Friends : I hope and trust that, as I 
shall try to speak to you this afternoon, I shall have your 
prayers and sympathy, that God's blessing may rest upon us, 
and that all I shall say this afternoon may be directed to God's 



260 THE TKUE PATH ; 

holy spirit. For if God be with us, who can be against us ? It 
has been a good day for me, and I am glad that I came here 
and have had the pleasure of hearing of the world's Redeemer. 
That One, of whom we heard to-day, by the sweet influence 
of His holy spirit came to me and took the scales from my 
eyes. and opened the prison-house of bondage; and through 
the name of Christ I am permitted to stand before you, saved 
by His grace, and I trust not only reformed, but transformed 
by the renewing of the mind, and that by-and-by I may be 
able to prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect 
will of God concerning me. You have heard from the lips of 
this young man to-day how he was rescued. Brother Eccles 
Robinson and you will excuse me whilst I say a word respect- 
ing him. I have had the good fortune of meeting him, and I 
wish to say in the presence of this vast multitude that the boy 
seems to have been a greater blessing to me than I have been 
to him. I wish to say to you, that if any of you are getting 
great wealth on account of a sober life, on account of some kind 
act some person may have done you, I believe to-day I am 
getting the greatest joy of any of you, in the fact that I saw 
this young man standing up and saved by the grace of God ; 
and he has a happy wife and family in the city of Elmira, and 
another happy family in Pittsburgh, where he has a loyal and 
Christian mother who has hoped for the reformation of her 
boy. She has other boys who are not yet saved, and I will 
ask your prayers for them to-day, that God may reach them, 
and that her heart may be made happy in the complete salva- 
tion of all her children. He squandered a fortune of some 
seventy thousand dollars, and paid particular attention to 
getting rid of it, as lots of young men do who never knew 
how they get money, only their fathers gave it to them, 
and they do not know the value of it, and consequently 
they go to work and spend it. And I think sometimes when 
God's people need some money to carry on their work that you 
people who are buying United States bonds, and extending 
your broad acres, if you please, and constantly spending your 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEBANCE. 261 

money in that way, instead cf giving it to God's people, to 
build a fence around your boys to keep them from going to 
destruction — that you will be sorry by-and-by that you didn't 
do it. Remember that all you have got to-day belongs to Him, 
and by-and-by you will have to give it all up, and I hope and 
trust you will feel when God calls you that you have been a 
faithful steward and have done your duty. Excuse me for 
this reference, because the work we are engaged in is the tem- 
perance reform. But it almost breaks my heart when I see 
some of God's ministers — noble men — who have become almost 
superannuated, so to speak ; who have worked all the days of 
their lives for their people, giving themselves awav and almost 
starving themselves, and right under the eaves of his house is 
the palatial residence of a man who says he is a brother, but 
simply in name, not in practice. May God help us to open 
our hearts to God's poor. This is not temperance, but I am 
not to be trusted on this subject. I did not tell you I was an 
Irishman, and you know that an Irishman is always permitted 
to speak until he is understood. 

"I will talk to you this afternoon a little while on the subject 
of gospel temperance. My good brother who introduced me, 
Dr. Vincent, whose name is familiar to all the good people in 
this country, bringing us into closer relations with God and 
each other, has announced it as the new temperance movement. 
I say to you that I will call it a leaf from real life, and if there 
are men who drink or sell intoxicating liquors here I have no 
quarrel with you, riot a word. I came here to-day with that 
blessed motto of Abraham Lincoln, ' With Malice towards 
none, with Charity for all,' and hence it is, I believe, safe for us 
to leave our hearts in the hands of God and permit Him to do 
something for us, so that if words offensive shall pass from my 
lips, on my part they are not intended. Real life always fur- 
nishes stranger stories than romance ever dreamed of, and the 
truth is always more startling than fiction. On April 24, 
183G, I wis born in the village of Turgot, county Wexford, in 
the eastern part of Ireland, three thousand miles across the 



262 THE TKUE PATH ; 

Atlantic ocean, in a humble little thatched cottage, situated 
upon a beautiful mound of land overlooking the sea ; and 
although separated from that humble home for more than 
twenty years, by a distance of thousands of miles, yet in 
imagination I can see it as it was, and sometimes memory will 
take wings and fly to the humble cottage home and with rapt- 
urous delight feed upon boyhood's days. Well do I remem- 
ber, when a youth, kneeling with my mother in silent prayer 
and asking God to watch over my helpless infancy, and keep 
my riper years in the way of peace. The front garden was 
filled with choicest flowers, planted by my own hands, 
making the air fragrant with their richest perfume ; the slop- 
ing hills kissed by the rays of the morning sun, whilst the 
grand old ocean rolled at the foot of the hill singing its cease- 
less hymn of praise to Him who bids a thousand fleets sweep 
over it and write no furrow on its ever youthful brow. I have 
stood in the little cottage door and looked out on its bright, 
green, throbbing bosom, over which the vessels passed and 
repassed with their white, silken sails, bearing their precious 
freight to the land of the free and the home of the brave. I 
had read of this new world, its golden mines and silver lakes, 
and longed for the time to come when I, too, could sail for this 
free land. But it seemed to me like hoping against fate. We 
were poor and had to struggle against poverty and drive it 
out of the house the best we could. I do not know that you 
are afflicted with the disease in this charming locality, but we 
were particularly afflicted with poverty in the little house 
'beyant the say.' I remember at the time of the golden har- 
vest, of coming in at night and lying down with the grain we 
had gathered, and at noontime we pushed away the little fur- 
niture and threshed out the barley, and in this way your 
speaker first commenced to make a living. If there is a be- 
setting sin in this country to-day, one that is undermining the 
soul of honor, it is because young men have become ashamed 
of honest labor ; and allow me to say to you, young man, 
• who have taken your stand upon the world's broad field of 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 263 

battle, never be ashamed of honest labor, and whatever thy 
hand findeth to do, that is honorable, do it with all thy might, 
and the blessing of him who hath made us in the express 
image of himself will crown your efforts with success. . Then 
if there is a man in this congregation to-day who is in the 
darkness of despair and who is walking in the valley of humili- 
ation, that the iron hand of poverty has got a close hold upon — 
ah, there is hope for you, my brother. You can buy your 
release from this tyrant if you are willing, by the grace 
of God assisting you, to take the hand of honest labor 
and let it lead you. It is the golden highway of honor 
to-day that is cast up for the ransom of his people. 
I care not whether it is the tinker, the tailor, the me- 
chanic or the man who studies in the office, the only way to 
honor, to true manhood, is by the golden way of honest toil. 
Then, my dear brother, take heart, do not be discouraged, let 
us go up and possess the land. But, you say, there are diffi- 
culties in the way, there are boulders to be removed, yes, and 
mountains to be cast into the sea ; but what of it ? blessed be 
God, this divine, this kingly, this immortal spirit that beats 
and longs for freedom and noble life, shall give them power to 
remove the boulders. Excelsior ! thou kingly spirit ! Come 
on, men ! let's go up into this land, where it is crowned with 
the eternal sun, and stand with the best and truest, with our 
life of deathless honor won from honest labor. 

" After years of persevering toil, wealth came, and after 
wealth came, fashion was introduced. I trust you are not 
afflicted with this yourselves, but I have no time to talk to you 
about fashions ; but let me say just a word, and I say it to my 
children, have the manly courage to live within your means. 
This is the secret of virtuous manhood. Don't barter away 
your honor ; don't do it for a suit of clothes ; don't pawn 
your word. Be free. Be a man and breathe God's pure air. 
Carry a heart true aivi loyal within your breast ; that if it is 
turned inside out there is no stain upon it, and you are a man 
as noble as walks the earth. Public opinion mother would 



264 THE TRUE PATH ; 

cater to ; and for weeks previous to the arrival of company, 
she would be in the pantry preparing her pies and cakes ; and 
the table "might be ever so well laden, unless the liquor be 
placed upon it it would not be acceptable. In my country, 
when a boy, I was not admitted to the social circle. But I 
notice in this country that Bobbin's chair is brought to the 
head of the table, and all the company are introduced to Bob- 
bin : but in my country all the youngsters are huddled to- 
gether out in the kitchen, and this part of the entertainment I, 
didn't like very well, for I was one of the boys who subsisted 
largely on what I ate, and was passionately fond of hearing 
what was going on, and I was pleased to see what pains 
mother took. And it was in this little tidy kitchen our food 
was prepared, and the little white Irish linen cloth, whiter than 
snow, was put on the table ; and white China tea dishes, with 
gold edges around them, kept in the closet but for these special 
occasions, and if you touched them they would sing like a bird. 
I could see the frosted cake where the knife had cut through 
it, and see the great nice raisins, and it was not on account of 
any goodness in me that I didn't pick them out. Mother 
would call me into the other room and say : ' Come here, my 
boy, be a good boy, and keep perfectly still out in the kitchen.' 
' Ho, dear, oh, dear.' i Stop your noise and go into the kit- 
chen.' ' Oh, dear, oh, dear.' There was no alternative but 
into the kitchen, with the tears running down my cheeks. I 
longed for the time to be a man and eat with the rest of the 
people. I was peeping through the door when, one of the 
company beckoned to me and I crej^t in, and he put his arms 
around me as I stood by him, little codger as I was. They 
had got through eating and had commenced to drink their 
toddy. My friend had a glass in his hand, put sugar in it and 
diluted the liquor and passed it into my little hand ; and I 
remember standing by his side and sipping it, and I remember 
the first Hash of intoxication that passed through my system. 
It was at home, in the social circle, in the little house I have 
described, that your speaker first learned to drink intoxicating 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 265 

liquor, and where the seeds of intemperance were first sown, 
and I believe my mother loved me as well as any of you 
parents love your children. Let me beseech you, for your 
children's sake, to remove this evil from your house and give 
them the benefit of a life of total abstinence. It is one of the 
grandest gifts you can give to your children to-day. 
- " I wish. I had the power to tell you how I longed to see this 
Blessed country, where all men stand free and equal. When I 
told mother I meant to come I remember how the big tear- 
drops stood in her eyes. And well I remember, too, her pack- 
ing up my little trunk, and the tears would drop on the articles 
as she placed them there." 

Mr. Murphy affectingly described his parting, the voyage to 
America, and his experience until his conversion in the jail at 
Portland. He concluded his address with one of his wonderful 
bursts of eloquence, amidst the loud and continued applause 
of the large audience. 



266 THE TRUE PATH ; 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

"FRANCIS MURPHY AMONG THE TROJANS. ANOTHER GRAND 

SEASON OF TEMPERANCE REFORM AND REVIVAL. FORTY 

THOUSAND PLEDGE-TAKERS IN TWO MONTHS. STRIKING 

PHASES OF THE CAMPAIGN AT TROY. 

The next remarkable campaign of the temperance reformer 
was at Troy, N. Y., one of the largest manufacturing centers 
of the Empire State. His advent was looked forward to for 
weeks in advance with the greatest curiosity ; and a fever of 
interest and expectation excited over the man, who will pro- 
bably be known as the greatest temperance revivalist since the 
death of Father Matthew. Preparations were made for the 
coming event, and every step taken by the influential and rep- 
utable citizens to make the season rich in faithfulness. The 
newspapers, especially, interested themselves deeply in the mat- 
ter, and when Murphy arrived, he found the field splendidly 
prepared for the sewing of the seed. So strong was the public 
feeling that the Common Council proffered the reformer the 
use of the large audience room in the City Hall for the inaug- 
ural meeting. His novel methods and peculiarly original and 
effective plan of attacking the sodden heart and conscience of 
the drunkard were the themes of general discussion, and as 
several interviews with Murphy by the newspaper reporters 
had been published, the public mind was well enlightened as 
to the plan of battle, which the great temperance general was 
to inaugurate. In one of these interviews Mr. Murphy said : 

" This cause, I wish you to distinctly understand, is neither 
political nor sectarian. It is for the Roman Catholic as well 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 267 

as the Protestant, and we can all shake hands together over 
the success of the movement. 

" My motto is ' with Malice toward none, with Charity for 
all, 5 and I distinctly adhere to it upon all occasions. I make 
no tirade against liquor sellers ; there are some good men in 
the business, but they cannot be driven out by abuse. I am 
convinced that the only true method of total abstinence is to 
prevail upon men to stop drinking, and then the other men will 
cease selling, as there will be no demand for their whisky. 
There can be no reduction in the sale of intoxicating drink so 
long as men continue to use it. Therefore, my idea is to per- 
suade men to abstain, for you can have no stronger sentiment 
in the community than that in the real life of the people. 

u You may legislate to any extent concerning the closing of 
saloons, but you do not reach the hearts of the people. You 
must prevail upon a man to stop drinking and turn his atten- 
tion to his home, and instead of spending his money in a grog- 
shop, induce him to carry it home to his wife and children." 
. Mr. Murphy expresses his doubt of the efficacy of legislation 
in securing the reform of men addicted to spirituous drink and 
confirmed inebriates. Kind words, gentleness and warm- 
hearted sympathy he thinks will accomplish a great deal 
more. He said in conversation, " I believe that kindness will 
go a great way in saving these men. They are too much 
neglected now and passed by as though outcasts from society. 
And yet these very men, if they could only receive a kind 
word and some little attention, if they received treatment of 
that kind, I believe in my heart that nearly all could be saved. 
My. experience in this movement has convinced me of that 
fact, for in my own life it was kindness that saved me." 

The two men selected by Murphy, in accordance with his 
method of work, to assist him, were Eccles Robinson, who had 
carried on the Elmira work, and Col. Luther Caldwell, one of 
the notable converts of that work. Of the former, the reader 
has already had a sketch. The latter-named gentleman, who 
had been quite prominent, both in social and public life, in his 



268 THE TRUE PATH ; 

region, is worthy of some special description, before we pro- 
ceed further with the Murphy crusade in Troy, as he was a 
most powerful and enthusiastic assistant in the work accom- 
plished. 

The striking fact is that Col. Caldwell, formerly proprietor 
of the Rathbun House, Elmira, signed the pledge through the 
instrumentality of the young man, Eccles Robinson, sold the 
hotel, and has become one of Mr. Murphy's most devoted 
assistants. Col. Caldwell was a man of no little prominence 
in central and western New York ; was proprietor of the 
Elmira Advertiser; for two consecutive sessions clerk of the 
assembly, secretary of the State constitutional convention, and 
some four years ago was elected mayor of the city of Elmira, 
proving to be a very popular chief magistrate. He is a fervent, 
earnest man, and possessed of a strong, clear voice, which has 
always given him a famous reputation as a reader. 

He ascribed his conversion to the fact that his wife inter- 
ested herself in the* movement, and in that way his thought 
and attention were attracted. One Sunday afternoon he at- 
tended a meeting in the Opera House in Elmira, in company 
with his wife, and before he left the building, he became an 
enthusiastic convert to the cause of temperance. 

On Monday, the following day, he received an invitation to 
deliver an address in the village of Corning. He hesitated, 
doubting his ability to speak upon the subject of temperance, 
but finally accepted the offer, and in his debut is said to have 
made a great impression upon all of his hearers, and accom- 
plished much good. His time after that was occupied to such 
an extent with the work he had entered upon, that he finally 
sold out his interest in the hotel, and has since devoted himself 
exclusively to the movement he joined. Mr. Murphy pro- 
nounces him an able and eloquent orator. 

Col. Caldwell declared that previous to his conversion he 
had been bitterly opposed to the cause of temperance, on 
account of the severe denunciations and terrific tirades all 
reformers had indulged in towards those who had connection 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 269 

in any way whatever with the liquor business. Out of curi- 
osity to hear what the young man, Mr. Robinson, had to say 
upon the then much agitated subject in Elmira, and whose 
motto he learned was "Malice towards none, Charity for all," 
in appealing to audiences, Col. Caldwell decided to attend the 
meeting, with the above-mentioned result. 

The impulse which led to Mr. Murphy's being called to 
Troy was purely of a religious character. The ministerial 
association appointed a committee, of which Rev. Dr. Bald- 
win was chairman, for the purpose of negotiating with Mr. 
Murphy, and preparing the way for his labors, with what re- 
sults we have already indicated. The heartiness with which 
the city government and the general public co-operated, left 
no doubt as to the success of the plan. Mr. Murphy arrived 
at Troy on Saturday night, Nov. 10, 1877. Before com- 
mencing his labors, he took a couple of days for rest, of which 
he stood in great need. On Sunday night, Dr. Baldwin in- 
troduced him to the congregation of the Third Street Baptist 
Church, whom he addressed in a few earnest and telling re- 
marks, concluding with a fervent prayer to the Almighty, 
that his labors might be blessed in their city. Before giving 
a connected account of the Troy work, Mr. Murphy's views 
and feelings, as expressed in a conversation with a local 
journalist, will be of decided interest, and we quote the more 
important parts of the interview : 

" I tell you, my friend," he remarked, " I have gone into 
this blessed field body and soul, and I am going to stick to it, 
sink or swim. You may not be sanguine of the success of the 
great movement here, but I am morally certain that unex- 
pected results will crown our labors in this city." 

" What are your impressions of Troy, Mr. Murphy ?" 

" I am favorably impressed with your city, and feel satisfied 
in my own mind that an opportunity is offered here for me to 
do great good, and that too many of your citizens are slaves 
to the habit of drink. I do not believe in having the love of 
God as a respecter of persons, but consider one man is no 



270 THE TRUE PATH ; 

better than another any further than his conduct justifies. 
It is utterly impossible to separate the poor from the rich, or 
the ignorant from the intelligent. Our interests are mutually 
bound up together ; therefore it is the duty of all to do what 
they can, consistently with their convictions of right, to eman- 
cipate mankind from the slavery of spirituous liquors." 

"How do you propose to inaugurate your movement here? : ' 

"By a public address, in which I shall appeal to the honor, 
intelligence, integrity and love of truth and justice. The 
pledge will be offered upon that occasion, but it is not my 
wish to have anybody subscribe his name to the obligation 
unless he feels it his duty to do so. Afterwards noonday 
prayer-meetings will be held for the purpose of asking the 
blessing of God upon our united efforts to reclaim men from 
the power of intoxicating drink, and then I can have a per- 
sonal interview w T ith these individuals, take them by the hand, 
look into their faces and give such counsel as I think tliey 
stand in need of. The work is truly one of love and kindness, 
and our motto is, ' Malice toward none, and Charity for ail.' 
There is no denunciation of liquor dealers ; if men will stop 
buying, the sale will cease. Drinking is a voluntary act ; if 
men drink they certainly have the right to cease doing so. 
But to accomplish this end and overcome the pernicious appe- 
tite, divine help is needed." 

" How do you propose, Mr. Murphy, to carry out your work 
and make it permanent after it is once fairly established ?" 

" I firmly believe that every man has religious convictions ; 
that he is friendly to some religious society in the city in 
which he lives ; that it is a duty which he owes to himself and 
his family to become connected with a religious body in order 
to encircle himself, after he has resolved upon a reform, with 
restraints and influences which will tend to assist him in main- 
taining his word of honor. I think we should establish read- 
ing-rooms in different sections of the city, and supply them 
with the daily papers, scientific and mechanical journals, the 
leading monthlies and periodicals, where the workingmen can 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 271 

assemble, read the current news and spend an evening profit- 
ably to themselves and to their vocations. I would connect 
with each of these reading-rooms a post-office where young 
mechanics and others may have their letters and postal matter 
mailed to them, in that way inducing an attendance and popu- 
larizing the ' walks of temperance.' " 

" I should like to ask you a question, Mr. Murphy, which 
would naturally interest the readers of the Times. Will the 
movement be connected with any church organization in the 
city?" 

" Decidedly, none whatever. It is thoroughly Christian in 
its spirit, and all may co-operate with us as our platform is 
broad. It is neither sectarian nor political, but Christian and 
humanitarian, and a purely temperance movement conducted 
on Christian principles." 

" Still, do you think a religious movement inseparable from 
temperance reform ?" 

" I do, because the moment a man becomes sober he com- 
mences living better by providing for his family, beautifying 
his home, educating his children, and experiences a more sin- 
cere love for truth. Religion, to my mind, really consists in 
living well. Our temperance movement will have in it all 
the elements that enrich and ennoble human life." 

" How long do you propose to remain in Troy ?" 

" I have no definite knowledge of the length of time, but will 
probably remain here as long as I feel I can accomplish good." 

" What remuneration are you to receive for your services 
in Troy ?" 

" There is no stated sum ; it is left with a committee of 
citizens to pay me what they may see fit after I have com- 
pleted my labors here, and however small the amount, I assure 
you I shall not grumble." 

"Do you expect to enlist Christian women of cur city m 
your enterprise, Mr. Murphy ?" 

" Certainly I do." 

" How do you desire them to assist you V 



272 THE TEUE PATH ; 

" I trust they -will form a commission with their headquarters 
at some point in close proximity to the hall where the meet- 
ings are held, and that they will provide sandwiches for the 
hungry and furnish such clothing as the unfortunate poor are 
in great need of." 

" Do you expect immediate abstinence from the confirmed 
inebriate ?" 

" No, sir. That man needs to be nursed, to be treated med- 
icinally, and receive good food in order to prepare him for the 
great change which he must necessarily undergo before he 
can be fairly established in the paths of temperance." 

" Is there any foundation, Mr. Murphy, in the statement 
that has been widely circulated by the press throughout the 
country, to the effect that you have insisted upon the pay- 
ment of $200 for each night you have lectured ?" 

" The assertion is conspicuously false in every respect. I 
have never asked or demanded pay for services I have rend- 
ered. Very flattering inducements have been frequently 
offered me to travel through the country as a lecturer, but my 
sense of right would not permit me to accept such offers. 
You will admit yourself that the moment I enlist my labors 
in a movement for which I receive a certain fixed price, my 
work as a reformer ceases. With the view of assisting me 
in my straitened circumstances, the executive committee of 
the National Christian Temperance Association made a series 
of engagements for me in western cities, with the understand- 
ing that I was to be paid $200 a night, but they were all can- 
celed by me, contrary to the wishes of the committee, for fear 
that it would hurt the cause to which I was so devoted." 

" What has been your success in large cities ?" 

" In Pittsburgh and Alleghany City we succeeded in three 
months in obtaining 95,000 signatures to the pledge, and lam 
informed that during the past year not one per cent, has 
fallen off. In Philadelphia 110,000 people signed the pledge 
during my stay there. Do not be discouraged, bright times 
are corning for Troy, and I am convinced they are not far off. 



5? 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 273 

"What do you think of Father Mathew as a reformer?" 

" I think he was the greatest benefactor that God ever gave 
to Ireland. I have met with many of my countrymen who 
signed the pledge with Father Mathew, and who have faith- 
fully kept it, and as a result, they have paid for their homes, 
educated their children, and are now honored and respected 
citizens." 

" What are your impressions of John B. Gough ?" 

" He is second to none as a reformer. He is one who has 
always yielded obedience to the subject as God has given him 
to see it. He is not jealous or envious — he is too great in him- 
self to be jealous of any man." 

Francis Murphy's initial meeting in Troy was a most re- 
markable one. The audience room of the City Hall was 
crowded to an uncomfortable degree ; and it was estimated 
fully 1,000 persons were utterly unable to get even within 
hearing of the great speaker, and consequently were obliged 
to go away. 

The reception given to Mr. Murphy was hearty in the ex- 
treme, and plainly indicated what feelings he aroused wherever 
he went. His heart must have felt very glad at the success of 
the opening day of his work here. His address consisted 
chiefly of a rapid sketch of his life ; and was replete with pas- 
sionate and eloquent appeals to his hearers. Many of his de- 
scriptions were so pathetic that persons wept unreservedly. 
Now and then he would lapse into a full, rich brogue, and tell 
some humorous story that would set the audience into peals of 
hearty laughter. 

The opening part of Mr. Murphy's inaugural address to the 
people of Troy, w r e give as follows : 
" Ladies and Gentlemen : 

"My dear friends, I thank you again and again for this royal 
reception to the city of Troy, and I assure you all I have a 
heart that feels and a memory that does not forget. The 
welcome I have received from your clergy will be a bene- 
diction for all time to come. I have met your mayor, and a 



274 THE TUXJE PATH ; 

more agreeable reception I have never experienced. I am 
proud that he is the chief magistrate of the city ; that he is 
an Irishman, and that his name is Murphy. I love my country 
and my countrymen — I don't go behind the bush to conceal it 
— and it is always a source of great satisfaction to see their 
names high up on the roll of honor. 

" For the past week I have been in your city resting, and I 
am delighted with its general appearance. Looking at the 
long row T s of trees on either side of the streets, I thought how 
beautiful they must have looked as the green clasped the green 
across them. Troy is certainly a grand place to live in, situate 
as it is close to the noble Hudson and overshadowed by 
mountains like Jerusalem. It is worth a lifetime to be intro- 
duced to such an interested audience upon an occasion similar 
to this, and the grand exhibition at Philadelphia did not pre- 
sent as glorious a spectacle. It was with great satisfaction 
that I had an interview with my dear friend, Father Haver- 
mans, and received his blessing and God-speed in the move- 
ment I came here to inaugurate. It is my purpose, in coming 
here, to do good, if possible. 

" I have no unkind word for liquor dealers. If men stop 
drinking whisky, its sale will cease. With peace on earth and 
good will towards all men, we are here, believing, that we can 
only accomplish good by introducing God's love and mercy.. 
I have a request to make — that you will pray for me, and that 
all I do and say will be prompted by God's spirit. 

" My theme this afternoon is real life, in which I myself am 
chiefly concerned. Life has alw T ays furnished stranger stories 
than romance, and truth is stranger than fiction. On April 24, 
1836, I was born in the southern part of Ireland in the county 
of Wexford. My home was an humble little thatched cottage 
sitting upon a grassy mound overlooking the sea. Although 
separated from that humble place for more than twenty years, 
and to-night by thousands of miles, I look back to the sacred 
spot and in imagination see it as it was. Well do I remember. 
my sainted mother kneeling by my side in prayer and asking 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 275 

God to watch over and protect me. Well do I remember how 
often I stood in the little cottage door, looked out on the 
bright bosom of the sea and watched the vessels pass and repass 
with their snowy white sails, toward the land of the brave and 
the home of the free. I had heard of this wonderful country 
with its templed hills, its golden mines, until my young heart 
thirsted and longed for the time to come when I might sail for 
the land of liberty. 

c: But this seemed to me like hoping against fate, for Ave were 
poor and had to struggle with poverty — to fight against it and 
drive it out of the house as best we could. I trust you who 
are before me this afternoon are not afflicted with that disease, 
but we were peculiarly troubled with it in the little cottage 
'beyant the say.' In an humble way — following reapers in 
the fields and gathering the sheaves — I began to earn my living, 
but right here I want to say, young men, do not be ashamed of 
honest labor. Whatever thy hand findeth to do that is honor- 
able, do it with thy might, with all thy strength, and the bless- 
ing of Him who made us in the express image of Himself will 
crown your efforts with success. 

" Don't stand with folded hands calling upon Hercules for as- 
sistance, but take the help of honest labor and let it. lead you, 
whether it is in the workshop, the office, or in the furrowed 
field. Shame upon you who are waiting for an uncle to die to 
leave you money, but with a brave heart stand out and earn 
your bread by the sweat of your brow. The secret of a suc- 
cessful life and honest manhood is to live within your income. 

" The feeling of being obliged to turn around and walk in 
an opposite direction when you see a creditor coming towards 
you, is not an agreeable one. Whatever you pledge your word 
of honor to do, do it like a man, but be careful what you 
pledge. It is the man who has the will, the courage, the kingly 
nobility within him to tak,e part manfully in the battle of life 
that will work out his own salvation successfully. It is the 
man who will stand up like a man amongst men and earn his 
own bread." 



276 THE TEUE PATH 



The remainder of the oration was devoted to a sketch of his 
own career, the details of which have already been given in 
this book. After the address Mr. and Mrs. Taylor sang " Hold 
the Fort " in a stirring fashion, all joining in the chorus. The 
evening session of the same day was signalized by brief 
speeches by Col. Caldwell and Eccles Robinson. The former 
said : 

" Thomas De Quincy, in one of his essays, remarked that 
' When eagles soared to heaven, bats and owls should retire to 
their dens ; ' and after you have listened to the grand efforts 
of Francis Murphy this afternoon, it seems almost sacrilegious 
that I should say a single word to this audience. But Mr. 
Murphy is not a flowing well, and cannot talk all the time, so 
I am here to speak upon the subject of temperance. I must 
preface my remarks by saying that I am only a young con- 
vert to the cause. For fifty-five years I lived without sign- 
ing a total abstinence pledge, and I confess I didn't believe in 
it ; and to a certain extent I made use of spirituous liquors. I 
held with indifference those who gave their support to the 
temperance cause, and looked upon it as a movement in which 
pious Christian women might with propriety interest them- 
selves. It always seemed to me that the temperance adherents 
or followers commenced by denouncing liquor sellers and 
declaring that those who drank intoxicating beverages should 
be kept at arm's length, while the sellers themselves were lost 
beyond all prayers. I was informed by these partisans that all 
drinkers, together with the dealers, were scoundrels and ruf- 
fians, and outside of the pale of redemption. Now, as I myself 
was engaged in the business, I did not, as you may imagine, 
particularly appreciate these tirades. About a year ago I 
heard of an Irishman in Pittsburgh, named Francis Murphy, 
who preached there in behalf of the c cold water ' cause under 
the motto ' Malice toward none, Charity for all,' and I was 
somewhat struck with the difference between his platform and 
that of other reformers. The good temperance people of 
Elrnira prosecuted the poor, insignificant rum-sellers who were 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 277 

running their small shops in violation of the license law. This 
action, of course, pleased us large dealers, and we approved of 
this course because it naturally added to our business consider- 
ably. Hearing of Murphy's motto, with the mantle of charity 
thrown around it, I determined to listen to this man if he ever 
visited my city. 

" My wife expressed the wish that I should attend a temper- 
ance meeting given in Elmira last winter, and presided over 
by a young man named Eccles Robinson, who is here and will 
address you to-night. . If you can show me a wife who does 
not want her husband a total abstinence man I will show you 
a curiosity ! I will not recite the particulars of my signing 
the pledge, and the earnest solicitations of my wife urging me 
to take the step. I had always been previous to that time 
what is generally termed a moderate drinker ; but there are 
many who go down to their graves, killed by drink, believing 
they, too, are only 'moderate ' drinkers. The only safety is in 
total abstinence. 

" It is a most singular fact that the two men who have accom- 
plished the most good for the cause of temperance are both 
Irishmen, Father Mathew and this gentlemen on my left, 
Francis Murphy. 

" Father Mathew administered the total abstinence pledge 
with the solemnity of a saint, and gave to the ceremony all the 
sanction of the church, the oldest Christian church of the 
world. He went through all Ireland with the pledge, and 
gave it as a benediction to thousands upon thousands of 
people. Not satisfied with this, he crossed the Atlantic and 
reared a monument to his goodness and love here that will 
last while countless ages shall roll by. Father Mathew not 
only preached temperance, but he persuaded men in words of 
love and charity to sign the pledge and become better men. 
The hundreds of Q Father Mathew total abstinence societies * 
all over our land attest that though dead he yet speaketh. 

" Francis Murphy, like this famed Irish priest, goes with the 
pledge in one hand and the religion of the Bible in the other, 



278 THE TRUE PATH ;' 

and preaches that, with ' Malice toward none, with Charity to 
all,' men engaged in the traffic of intoxicating liquors and 
those who drink the same are all to be saved by preaching 
words of love and kindness. And so these two Irishmen, 
Father Mathew and Francis Murphy, will stand in history as 
the two greatest temperance reformers of this age. 

" They have done more for the cause than ail of the lecturers 
combined. While John B. Gough is a great orator his actual 
results among the people cannot be compared with those of the 
other two. Both of the latter join with their work the relig- 
ious spirit. Mr. Murphy, the advocate of gospel temperance, 
comes to this city, feeling that he is commissioned by heaven 
to undertake and carry out this good work. He does not come 
for the purpose of advancing or injuring the interests of any 
political party, nor is he here under the auspices of any religious 
sect or denomination ; but he comes here to preach from the 
platform of Christ — to induce men to come forward and sign 
the pledge. God forbid that I should say anything to injure 
the feelings of other temperance reformers or workers who 
have labored so hard for the cause, but I feel they have all 
been too long in the same rut, and should get out of it. You 
well remember the parable of the fishermen who cast their nets 
upon one side of their boat and were unsuccessful, and follow- 
ing the counsel of Jesus they tried the other side and were 
rewarded by an immense haul. It is the same with other 
temperance reformers, they have been fishing on the wrong 
side, while Father Mathew and Francis Murphy have been 
casting their nets upon the right side with success. 

" I believe there are men here to-night who want to break off 
intemperate habits and all they require is a friendly hand to 
assist'them. We have not come here to save confirmed inebri- 
ates alone, but we want to rescue the young men who labor 
under the impression that it is something manly to drink 
liquc-r. We have come here, too, in the name of Christ, to save 
the hard working mechanics who spend their money for rum 
instead of carrying it home to their wives ; to save the moder- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 279 

ate drinkers, and in fact to save all who are addicted to intem- 
perate habits. We ask the co-operation of you all — the clergy, 
laymen and the public press, which spreads in the community 
the results of the good work as they occur. Give us, my dear 
friends, your prayers and efforts in this good work. Good- 
night." 

The remarks of Eccles Robinson at the same meeting were 
these : 

" Friends : It is with great trepidation that I speak to you 
to-night, but I am willing to do anything in my feeble power 
to save young men from doing as I have done. To this class 
I particularly address myself and desire their attention. The 
old Connecticut c blue ' law, which prohibited a husband kiss- 
ing his wife on Sunday, was evaded by husbands kissing other 
people's wives upon that day, and in the same way all legisla- 
tion in the matter of the sale of intoxicating liquors may be 
dodged. The drinking men I do not consider the worst in 
your community, though they are marked by society, while 
rich men committing greater crimes are upheld and tolerated. 
Let us w T ith the spirit of charity do all we can for the drinking 
men, and exert our- utmost to save fallen victims. 

" Parents should not set temptations before their children. 
When I was young I had the best of resolutions and never 
expected to fall as low as I subsequently did. I remember 
being called before President McCosh after a spree and told 
by him that I must leave college. I tried to induce him to 
give me another chance to reform, pledging myself that I 
would be a man among men, but he said c No.' After leav 
ing college I returned to my home in Pittsburgh, and though 
I made many good resolves I could not "withstand the tempta- 
tion to drink. I even went out West upon the plains in order 
to overcome, if possible, the fearful appetite, but without suc- 
cess. At last I became friendless and penniless in the streets. 
The only friend true to me through all my misery was my 
wife. For three weeks I kept a saloon in Pittsburgh, but the 
following circumstance induced me to give up the business. 



280 THE TRUE PATH ; 

One night I played cards and drank liquor with a young me- 
chanic until four o'clock in the morning, and he left me under 
the influence of the drug. The next morning I heard that he 
had been killed while coupling cars at the depot, and I felt 
that I was partly responsible for his death. 

" Last Christmas my physician said c Your constitution is 
gone, you must soon die, and I would advise you to make your 
preparations for that event.' It was at that time I met Mr. 
Murphy, who told me by the exercise of my will and God's 
grace I could become a sober man and do some good in the 
community. By the grace of the Lord, I am now a free man 
and will die one, and the shackles are not forged that can bind 
me down again to the curse of intemperance." 

The result of the morning meeting was a perfect headlong 
rush to the stage, of people who wished to sign the pledge, 
Mr. Murphy encouraging them with kindly and inspiring 
words. Over three hundred then and there subscribed and 
quitted the hall, decorated with the bit of blue ribbon, which 
is the emblem of open adherence to the temperance cause, as 
organized in the Murphy leagues. 

In the evening, the crowd was fully as great and clamorous 
for seats as that of the afternoon, and far more enthusiastic. 

After the sweet hymn, " I Will Sing of My Redeemer," 
was rendered, Mr. Murphy stepped forward and said, in a' 
most touching way : " I thank God for this sweet music, and 
the man who penned those beautiful lines. My friends, the 
lady who just sang was the sister of the late Mr. Bliss, the 
composer of the song." Mrs. Wilson was affected to tears. 

Col. Luther Caldwell was introduced to the audience in a 
most friendly fashion by Mr. Murphy as a " Christian gentle- 
man, an ex-officer in the rebellion, and late mayor of the city of 
Ehnira, who possesses one of the greatest hearts I have en- 
countered." 

The remarks made by the gallant colonel, which we have 
already given, were listened to with deep interest, and were so 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. .281 

full of common sense and sound logic, and withal so genial, 
that he was much applauded. 

As he is a prominent figure in the cause, our disgression 
will be pardoned and appreciated by the kind reader, before 
whom we place the following faithful description of the colo- 
nel's tout ensemble, quoted from an excellent authority : " He 
is about fifty-four years of age, and of medium height ; of 
full proportions, and rather inclines to stoutness ; with an 
open, genial face, clearly showing the kindly spirit possessed 
by its owner ; with a strong, powerful voice, which could be 
heard in every part of the hall ; with a clear, bright eye, and 
a pleasant smile, that seemed to exert a magnetic influence 
upon his listeners, and an earnestness in deliverv which 
rivited the attention of all." 

Mr. and Mrs. Wilson sang that beautiful song, entitled, " I 
am on the Lord's side, Bless the Lord ;" after which Mr. Mur- 
Murphy said he "took great pleasure in introducing to the 
audience a young man who had a fortune left him of $70,000, 
which he threw away in three years in dissipation. He be- 
came tired and weary of life, but he was induced to reform, 
and is now a most conscientious worker for the cause of tem- 
perance ; and through his instrumentality thousands had 
signed the pledge." 

This young man was Eccles Robinson, who had conducted 
so very successfully a Murphy movement in the city of El- 
mira. He received a warm reception. He is a man of about 
twenty-seven years of age, and possesses an impressive man- 
ner and very earnest delivery. The audience betrayed an 
almost breathless attention as it listened to his telling recital 
of his experiences, and fruitless efforts to break off from the 
habit of intemperance. 

After a pathetic song from the Wilsons, Mr. Murphy spoke 
for twenty minutes in a most stirring and effective manner, 
carrying the immense concourse of people with him from his 
first words to his last. 

The people sat spell-bound under his wonderful magnetic 



282 THE TRUE PATH ; 

influence. His naturally fine dramatic powers were fully de- 
veloped in the descriptions of intemperance as a venomous 
serpent ; and when in closing he asked all present to step f on- 
ward and take the pledge, certainly, hundreds upon hundreds 
did so. One thousand persons signed the pledge that memo- 
rable day in Troy. 

The meeting on Wednesday was greater in attendance, and 
even more successful than any of the previous ones. The 
City Hall was perfectly jammed, containing fully one thou- 
sand four hundred persons. 

Mr. Murphy's address was very effective. In speaking of 
liquor sellers, he said, " You cannot induce these men to close 
their saloons by vituperation or abuse. They must be dealt 
with in an entirely different way. They will not stop selling 
liquors until men cease drinking them, and there is no demand. 
Social companionship induces many to become intoxicated, 
brought about by the system observed when there is a large 
party together, of ' setting 'em up, and down they go.' It is 
only on account of the demand that saloons exist. 

" I tell you, my friends," said Mr. Murphy, " you can tell 
of the strength, culture and refinement of a people by the ap- 
pearance the city in which they live presents. If you go to 
saloon keepers and vent abuse directly at them, the probabili- 
ties are you will be forcibly ejected from their establishments, 
and the saying that 'more flies can be caught by molasses than 
by vinegar,' is true in regard to liquor sellers. 

" The world is to be saved by kindness, and in no other way. 
How many are saved who are turned out of jails and State 
prisons ? But men who believe in and practice mercy towards 
the fallen, have saved many by affectionate words and looks." 

After Mr. Murphy had resumed his seat and the sweet 
singers, the Wilsons, had sung, Col. Caldwell introduced 
Edward Murphy, the son of the temperance apostle, to tho 
audience. The young man was greeted with a hearty burst of 
applause. 

He delivered a pithy and able address of fifteen minutes' 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 283 

duration, which showed hira to be the fortunate possessor of the 
natural oratorical abilities and fluency so prominent in his father. 

An overflow meeting was held in Dr. Baldwin's church ad- 
joining the City Hall, which was an ovation in its way. The 
sacred edifice was crowded, and the people were very demon- 
strative. 

Mr. Murphy, Col. Caldwell, and Eccles Ro'binson addressed 
the people, and were received with marked favor and a great 
deal of genuine enthusiasm. 

The Saturday night meeting was made doubly interesting 
by the brief and telling speeches of the reformed men. No 
one could doubt the good Mr. Murphy had already done when 
one saw the hardest drinkers in the city standing before an im- 
mense audience, and confessing their desire for reformation. 

Gilbert McMasters, an attorney at law, of Pittsburgh, and a 
most zealous laborer in the noble cause, was introduced by 
Mr. Murphy, who said he was a recent convert, and told what 
good he had done. Mr. McMasters' remarks were to the 
point, and delivered in an earnest manner, enlisted the atten- 
tion and interest of the audience in his behalf. 

Angelo Packard, of Troy, and a recent convert, was brought 
forward by the apostle, and spoke in the following feeling 
manner : 
" Ladies and Gentlemen : 

" I have never before addressed an audience, and it is with 
no small degree of trepidation that I take my position upon this 
platform to-night. If I can say anything which will be pro- 
ductive of good, I shall consider myself amply repaid. I was 
a drinking man, and used intoxicating liquor steadily for three 
or four years. I nearly broke the hearts of my mother and 
my wife, and my friends all lost their respect for me. My 
appetite became so strong that I drank each day from thirty 
to forty glasses, and robbed my family of means for support. 
A gentleman yesterday said to ' me, c Why, Packard, you are 
a fool to give yourself away, nobody knew that you were a 
drinking man.' But I tell you, somebody did know I drank. 



284 THE TRUE PATH ; 

My parents knew I drank, and so did my wife. Some of you 
may say I am going to break my pledge, but I think there is 
no power that conld induce me to do so ; and I earnestly 
appeal to all young men to come forward and do as I have 
done." 

Mr. Murphy next introduced Andrew J. Felter, a well- 
known mechanic, whose appearance upoil the platform created 
great surprise among the audience, and caused loud and pro- 
longed applause. " Though his remarks were short," says an 
excellent authority, "they were delivered in a straightfor- 
ward, honest way, and were doubtless more effective than a 
long, scholarly effort from Gough would have proved under 
the circumstances." He said : " I never made a speech before 
in my life, unless it was in a bar-room. When Mr. Murphy 
came here, I attended the first meeting, took the pledge, and 
by the help of God, I mean to keep it." 

•Henry C. Ellis was well known in Troy as a man over-fond 
of his cup. Not unfrequently did he figure in the police 
courts. When he, after Mr. Murphy's introduction, advanced 
on the platform, the audience was very much amazed. He 
received a burst of deafening applause. He said : " I was in- 
duced to sign the pledge last night through remarks made by 
this gentleman (pointing to Mr. Murphy), which touched my 
heart. Some people say, c You cannot keep it.' Why, here I* 
have kept it already twenty-four hours. Thank God I am 
here, and I propose to keep the pledge in spite of whatever 
may be said to me." 

One of the most interesting features of this meeting was 
the conversion of a mute, who held quite an animated and 
long conversation with Mr. Murphy, through the aid of an 
interpreter. The crowds were so large that a plan had to be 
devised to accommodate them ; so it was agreed to have 
separate meetings for children. The first matinee was held 
on Saturday afternoon, and was very largely attended by the 
Troy youth, accompanied by their mothers. Considerable 
juvenile enthusiasm among the audience was manifested dur~ 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 285 

ing the cheery and pleasant "talks," delivered by Thomas 
Cooper, of Pittsburgh, Mrs. Wilson, the vocalist, and Col. 
Luther Caldwell. 

On Wednesday night, November 30, the City Hall was un- 
comfortably crowded, and the people demonstrated that the 
interest Francis Murphy had aroused in Troy was not of 
a transitory character. Thomas E. Murphy, son of the tem- 
perance advocate, conducted the overflow meeting at the 
Third Street Baptist Church, with considerable success. It 
was very largely attended, and the speeches made by Col. 
Caldwell, Capt. Lyons, of Elmira, and others were greeted 
with frequent and marked expressions of hearty approval. 

Francis Murphy made one of his forcible and characteristic 
speeches in which he said he thoroughly believed in a republic; 
that it was possible for one to heal and correct all the wrongs 
that affect society. The recent slavery in the South and its 
abolition was cited as an example ; but the slavery which 
whisky brings upon people entails more suffering and sorrow 
than was the oppression of the colored race. The laws of 
human life denounced the institution of slavery, and that 
noble patriot, John Brown, suffered death for the position he 
assumed and maintained upon the subject. It was this man 
who first raised his voice in favor of emancipation of the col- 
ored man and while on his way to the gallows, the morning he 
was executed, he met a little colored child, whom he kissed, 
saying, " I die for you, my boy ! " This talk relative to 
the emancipation of the negro was received with great ap- 
plause. 

Mr. Murphy, after his address, introduced a Pittsburgh con- 
vert by the name of McCurry, who said he was thankful he 
could bring good news to them. He had been laboring for 
some time past at Little Falls, in the temperance cause ; the 
battle had been hard, but by prayer and earnest work, the 
walls had been scaled and the struggle had resulted success- 
fully. Seventeen hundred signers to the pledge had been 
secured, handreds were continuing to take their places in the 



286 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ranks of gospel temperance, and in a few more days the vil- 
lage would be rescued entirely from intemperance. 

Mr. Myers, a gentleman from Pittsburgh, followed, who 
said he supposed he could control his appetite, but found out 
his mistake by an experience which induced him to sign the 
total abstinence pledge. While on a visit South, he was in- 
vited to dinner with a friend, and partook so freely of apple 
brandy — the effects of which he did not understand — that he 
discovered his inability to leave his chair. He thought he was 
drunk ; in fact he knew he was drunk. In a similar way, said 
the speaker, you will be tripped up in your good morals unless 
you put your name to the pledge. 

Henry C. Ellis, who has contributed not a little to the in- 
terest of the meetings by the entertaining and very character- 
istic way in which he recited some of the thrilling experiences 
of his eventful life, was next called upon, and made a short 
address. At the conclusion of his remarks there was great 
applause, and Mr. Murphy called for three cheers from the 
audience, which were given in a style which certainly must 
have pleased the ex-drunkard, Henry C. Ellis. 

Col. Caldwell perused an epistle he had just received from 
the proprietor of the Elmira Advertiser, informing him that 
James Gilson, his bar-tender when he owned the Rathbun 
House, had signed the pledge, and given up the business. 

Capt. Lyons next addressed the audience in a telling manner 
describing his degraded condition previous to his conversion 
to the cause of total abstinence, and in a very demonstrative 
way advised all young men to sign the pledge, and avoid the 
manifold perils of rum. 

The services on Thanksgiving night were unusually inter- 
esting. The weather was exceedingly inclement, and it was 
feared few would brave the storm to listen to temperance 
talk ; but the hall was as full as ever, and even standing room 
was considered desirable. 

" Real merit," Francis Murphy said, "was the test of dis- 
cipleship." Every upright person in this country could climb 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 287 

up the rugged way to success, step by step, and though very 
weary at times, the blessed thought that he was a man would 
steadily urge him on, and at last permit him to stand on the 
summit of prosperity "crowned with eternal sun." Our 
country was the grandest in the world, continued the speaker, 
and it did not take him long after reaching New York to learn 
the energy and activity of the Yankee temperament together 
with the busy struggle everywhere to amass wealth. In fact, this 
country could be compared to the rest of the world as a watch- 
spring to the mechanism of a time-keeper. He referred in a 
forcible way to our ancestors who, though numbering but three 
and a half millions, were determined to free themselves from 
the old world, which they did nobly. Are° we to become free 
men, to obtain a freedom greater than that of our forefathers ? 
Nearly, if not quite, said Mr. Murphy, 5,000,000 people in this 
country had already signed the pledge of total abstinence. It 
was the duty of all to do what they could towards bringing 
about this temperance reform. No one should falter in their 
faith or trust in the One who protected their fathers in the 
beautiful land given them. This country is ours, and like the 
army in blue that marched down South with the cry, "we are 
coming 500,000 more," our shout will be, "we are coming 
45,000,000 strong" to drive rum from the land saved by the 
hand of God. 

The Hon. Robert Love, ex-mayor of Steubenville, Ohio, fol- 
lowed in a clever and impressive speech, substantially as fol- 
lows : 

He said he was a sinner saved by grace, and there was no 
man in Troy who had suffered more from the effects of intern - 
perance than himself ; that the past year of total abstinence 
had been the happiest of his life. Look at the effects of rum 
upon this country, and take warning. He pitied from the 
depths of his heart confirmed drunkards and liquor-sellers, but 
he thought the only way to win them to the side of temperance 
was by kindness, for law by its penalties and the vituperation 
of hate had alike proved unavailing. Let us raise the banner 



288 THE TRUE PATH ; 

of " Malice towards none and Charity for all," and we shall 
finally stand by the grave of the curse intemperance and sing, 
" Hallelujah, 'tis done." 

George Hall, formerly a gambler and saloon-keeper at 
Pittsburgh, next addressed the audience. He thanked God 
he was able to stand upon that platform a sober man and in 
his right mind. • He had sold liquor and kept gambling-houses, 
but he was glad to say he was out of the business entirely. 
He did not make this remark with any wish to injure the feel- 
ings of those present in the audience who sold whisky or were 
accustomed to sitting behind green covered tables. Many 
true-hearted and noble men were occupied in that way who 
would gladly pursue another business if one was opened to 
them. The speaker said he did not think the habit would 
fasten itself upon him when he first began drinking, but he 
discovered he was mistaken. He was forty years old, and he was 
certain one-fourth of his life had been passed in prison. He 
referred in a touching way to the sufferings of his wife when 
he was incarcerated in jail ; that he loved his wife dearly, and 
upon gaining his liberty always made good resolutions to 
reform, but his appetite for rum was too strong for him to 
resist, until he met and received words of encouragement from 
Mr. Murphy. He warned young married men to beware of 
the ruinous effects of drink, which " biteth like a serpent and* 
stingeth like an adder." "Be men and do not touch the ac- 
cursed stuff to your lips," eloquently pleaded the speaker. If he 
had not been saved by Mr. Murphy, he knew he would have 
been on the wrong side during the recent riots, and perhaps 
met with death. 

He was followed by Martin Peelor, who made an impres- 
sive address, which was very well received by the audience. 
lie said while sitting there memory had been busy and his 
thoughts had carried him back a year ago when he was con- 
fined in the Albany penitentiary. He was thankful that Mur- 
phy's life-boat had drifted near him and thanked God he was 
now on the right side. It was by first taking the " occasional" 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 289 

glass that he had by successive stages reached his present de- 
graded position. We may foster the delusion that we can 
quaff the social glass with impunity, but there is danger in the 
experiment and it was not safe to attempt it, for no social 
position or wealth can save you. It was only by the means of 
this (showing a Murphy pledge) that your preservation is 
assured and you find yourself a free man. Mr. Peelor was 
followed by Dr. Searle, who made a short and characteristic 
speech. He spoke of the fact that many husbands had eaten 
their Thanksgiving dinners that day at home with their fam- 
ilies who had not done so for years on account of having been 
drunk. He thought this city was going to be redeemed be- 
cause men were pledging by God's help to abstain from intoxi- 
cating liquors. " Would it be a pleasing episode in the life of 
a father who took an occasional p'lass to see his son a drunk- 
ard and hear him say, c You are the cause of my degradation, 
father ' ? " 

The work of gospel temperance was commenced at Lansing- 
burgh by Francis Murphy, on Wednesday, November 28, at 
8:30 o'clock, P. M. The large audience room of the Methodist 
Church was packed with people, not even standing room being 
left. Mr. Murphy appeared promptly at the appointed hour, 
accompanied by Col. Caldwell, the sweet singers, Mr. and 
Mrs. Wilson, and they were greeted by the audience in a most 
emphatic and enthusiastic manner. Col. Caldwell was first 
introduced, and for half an hour spoke to the people in words 
of burning eloquence and exquisite pathos. Then came the 
man, whose name is now known throughout all America, who 
stands before the whole civilized world as a hero in the in- 
terests of moral reform. Every one present cheered as he 
stood before them ; and gazed intently at that handsome mus- 
cular form now so familiar and loved by thousands upon 
thousands. 

For fully one hour he spoke in his happiest vein, and carried 
every one with him, from tears and sobs, to shouts of laughter, 
as he chose. Certainly no man has ever made so powerful 



290 THE TRUE PATH ; 

and wonderful an impression on the Lansingburghers as 
Francis Murphy. They recognized him as specially sent 
to arouse the people of this country to the awful results of 
intemperance, and the glorious and blessed cause of total ab- 
stinence. At the close of his stirring address he most cordially 
invited all to come and sign the pledge, and hundreds availed 
themselves of the kind privilege. Many leading citizens who 
never had before taken an active part in temperance, came 
forward, and signed, among whom may be mentioned the 
postmaster, ex-Sheriff Cornell. Nearly eight hundred signed 
the Murphy pledge. George Hall and Robert Lane were 
among the workers, and had entire charge of the meetings: 
Meetings were held in this place every afternoon and evening, 
and the excitement spread like wild-fire all over this section of 
the country. 

The temperance wave reached Hart's Falls, and swept over 
it with astounding results. Baker's Hall was crowded nightly, 
and the enthusiasm was very intense. In a short space of 
time five hundred and sixty persons in this place signed their 
names to the pledge. A like result was felt at Glenn's Falls. 
The large auditorium, galleries and aisles of the Opera House 
were excessively crowded every night ; and in one week only 
there were over four hundred names appended to the Murphy 
pledge. C. C. Frost, the eminent lecturer, awakened an in- 
terest in temperance matters that greatly exceeded anything 
heretofore known at Glenn's Falls. Five young men, habitual 
sots, belonging to the wealthiest and most influential families 
in the place, were induced to take the pledge. 

In West Troy the excitement was similar. The people 
seemed to have but one wish, and that was to be Murphy 
men. Here, in only one evening, there were three hundred 
Bigners to the pledge. Francis Murphy's advent was a perfect 
ovation, and productive of untold good. 

On Friday night, the last day in that most memorable month 
of November, the audience in the City Hall was as crowded as 
on former occasions. Mr. Murphy made a brief speech, in 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 291 



which he most aptly said, " that fathers made a mistake in 
not .associating more with their sons, and making companions 
of them. If more care was taken in their training, they would 
become better and more useful men." Addressing himself to 
the young ladies present in the audience, the speaker said, " If 
they would endeavor to make it pleasant for their brothers as 
they did for other girls' brothers, their own would stay at 
home more, and not seek amusement elsewhere. If young 
men before him, like the prodigal son, who had deserted their 
homes, could only become aware of the love and longing felt 
for them by their parents and friends, and the pleasure in 
store for them upon their return, he was confident there would 
be no hesitancy on their part to reform and lead in the future 
strictly temperance lives." 

He then introduced, in his usual happy way, Mr. Fulsom, of 
Binghamton, who said, "It was needless for him to say it 
was a pleasure to be there and address such an audience upon 
the theme of temperance. God, through His infinite mercy, 
had saved him by this gospel temperance, and he felt it his 
duty to do what he could for the cause. He said he was 
stopped at the brink of a drunkard's grave by Francis Mur- 
phy ; that he attended a temperance meeting at Binghamton, 
and went reeling down one of the aisles of the hall, and 
signed the pledge, for the purpose of casting a slur upon the 
movement. The next day he resolved, upon consideration, to 
adhere to the pledge, and God had given him strength to pre- 
serve it. Thanksgiving day," he added, " a sober man, sur- 
rounded by his wife and children, he was happy, and certainly 
had something for which to be thankful. Appealing to the 
men, he implored them to take the pledge ; though people 
might say they were signing away their liberty, they were, on 
the contrary, by so doing, assuming their liberty." " Come,'' 
he added, " cast off the chains which keep you in bondage, 
and become free men." 

Angelo Packard made a very effective speech, and was 
much applauded. The Rev. Mr. Daniels, of Chicago, made a 



292 THE TRUE PATH ; 

short address. The latter said he was born in the theological 
seminary of which Francis Murphy was president. Though 
the studies taught were somewhat different in this than any 
other theological institution, still, the doctrines were sound 
and logical, and he thanked the professor (turning to Mr. 
Murphy) for his instruction. The scattering and diffusion of 
the doctrines of this gospel temperance reform in neighboring 
towns and villages, he compared with illuminating a hall with 
electricity. He said that speakers generally addressed people 
in rear part of the hall, while the worst sinners not infre- 
quently occupied the front seats. His remarks were received 
with applause by the audience. Rev. Mr. Sawyer said he 
was very much interested in the success of the temperance 
movement here, as he thought the influence of the good work 
would be felt in Albany. In regard to this reform, he said he 
had been very much impressed with two things — first, the 
power of kindness ; and secondly, the power of God and the 
ability of men experiencing it to do right. He felt that Mr. 
Murphy was destined to accomplish the greatest temperance 
reform ever known to the world. The Rev. Mr. Thompson, 
of Albany, followed with a few remarks. He was unable to 
say anything in the way of experience, because he had never 
tasted intoxicating drink. He said when Bell and Everett ran 
in the political field several years ago, the former was eulogized 
at a meeting by the speaker, for his scholastic attainments ; 
but declared, upon one occasion, when he was sitting in a 
dentist's chair, the operator made a mistake, and instead of 
extracting a tooth, pulled out his backbone. He closed by 
warning young men who had taken the pledge not to allow 
their backbones to be pulled out, but to remain true to the 
obligations they had assumed, through encouragements and 
discouragements. S. W. Brown, of Galesburg, 111., followed 
with a short, pointed speech, and closed by saying God would 
bless those who went to prison cells, and taking criminals by 
the hand, said there was still hope for them. Martin Peelor 
was the next speaker. He said he was unable to give the 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 293 

audience any idea how happy he had been since signing the 
pledge. Many had seen him stumbling through the streets, 
drunk, but it would never happen again, for he believed he 
was free from the curse of intemperance. 

Monday, December 3, was the commencement of the third 
week of the Murphy movement in Troy. Mr. Murphy and his 
zealous co-laborers had every reason to feel very gratified with 
the results they had so far accomplished. As the Troy Times 
said at that time : " When the temperance apostle first came 
here, many persons doubtingly shook their heads and declared 
the impossibility of his obtaining or awakening an interest in 
his work among the so-called ' bummer ' class. But the 
falsity of their predictions has already been conclusively 
proved, and, in addition, the assertion made by Mr. Murphy 
when he first arrived here that the movement, with Troy as 
its centre, would radiate in all directions, and be felt alike in 
the neighboring towns and villages, has been verified. The 
friends of the cause are sanguine of still greater success during 
the coming week." 

On Saturday night Francis Murphy, before a very large and 
attentive audience, opened his remarks by referring to the 
beautiful in life- which abounded in love of the purest quality. 
Reminiscences were like life-preservers ; when the memory re- 
called those of early boyhood they were often instrumental in 
rescuing men from fallen, degraded positions. The precept 
always observed by a mother was " overcome not good with 
evil, but overcome evil with good," and the speaker aptly 
illustrated this by several incidents in real life. If all do their 
duty they will succeed in their work, in which an opportunity 
is offered each and every one to accomplish something. The 
man selling liquor should be treated charitably, for he was 
doing so against the convictions of his own heart, and so long 
as the demand existed for alcoholic drink the sale would con- 
tinue. It was a crime against humanity and God to sell liquor, 
but those who bought it wero partners with the dealers. He 
said he did not want men to sign the pledge unless they be- 



294 THE TRUE PATH ; 

heved in it, and he told the Catholics that he himself would 
go with them to their priest and take it. He thanked God 
that the movement was above sectarianism. All he wanted 
was a man to cease drinking intoxicating liquor and adhere to 
his determination. 

The five minutes speakers then had the platform to them- 
selves and did some very good talking. One of these men, 
by name Daniel Ellis, caused no little merriment among the 
audience by his peculiar expressions and illustrative antics. 
He said he had heard bad news that morning— that he had 
been drunk, and the rum-sellers were only going to give him a 
vacation of a month. It was all false, however, and he never 
intended to violate the pledge he had taken, but proposed to 
remain true to the cause he had espoused, and as he returned to 
his seat he swung a large blue handkerchief over his head 
amid the vociferous laughter and applause of the audience. 

Mr. Murphy, with beaming face and sparkling eyes, ad- 
vanced on the stage and said he had received a bit of very 
good news indeed ; and said his heart felt exceedingly glad. 
He produced a piece of paper, and read out in a tone of voice 
that rang through the hall like a blast of the hunting horn : 

Lansestgbijegh, T>ec. 1 — 8 P. M. 
Francis Murphy, City Hall, Troy : 

Blessed be God ! The throne of alcohol is tottering and. 
must fall. Lansingburgh hails Troy with 1,000 signatures. 

Love & Hall. 

What cheers .went forth at that ! The building fairly shook 
with the ringing sounds. After the excitement had grown a 
little less warm, Mr. Murphy introduced the Rev. James II. 
Ross, who made a most impressive speech, in which he feelingly 
referred to Eccles Robinson, with whom he had an acquaint- 
ance at Princeton College in his freshman year. That gentle- 
man was habitually intoxicated while there, and he was greatly 
.surprised to learn of the change that had since come over him. 
He added it was the popular impression when a man had 
become low and degraded that it was impossible to raise him 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 295 

up. People should do away with this idea, for the evidence 
presented upon that platform during the past two weeks indi- 
cates that any man can be saved and become a respectable and 
honored member of society ; that Mr. Murphy himself was an 
example in question. A change of personal appearance always 
followed the reform of an inebriate, and, in his mind, this was 
a test 6i the sincerity of the man in reform. He had learned 
that a saloon-keeper reported his receipts for a given day to 
have been only eighty cents [" Thank the Lord," said Mr. 
Murphy], and expressed a wish that Mr. Murphy would leave 
town as soon as possible [" God bless him," interrupted Mr. 
Murphy]. He had been informed by the proprietor of a drug 
store that the sale of temperance beverages had greatly in- 
creased since the. organization of the Murphy movement in 
this city. The speaker closed by saying he would do all in his 
power to advance the interests of the temperance apostle and 
his associates in this city. 

The Sunday night meeting was not so large as that of Satur- 
day, nor was it expected to be, as an admission fee of twenty- 
five cents was charged. This was done every sabbath evening 
simply for the purpose of defraying incidental expenses that 
occurred in using the City Hall, which were not very light. 

Col. Caldwell was the first speaker. He said it had always 
been a great pleasure for him to address audiences upon polit- 
ical questions during exciting campaigns, but in all his ex- 
perience he never heard of his making a single convert by his 
efforts, nor had he ever learned of any other political speaker 
accomplishing such a result. When he commenced speaking 
upon gospel temperance, it was entirely different. At the 
very first meeting he addressed, over three hundred people 
signed the pledge, including the editor of a newspaper that 
had always been inimical to the movement. It was the source 
of great satisfaction to feel that he could accomplish some- 
thing and was able to witness the results of his labors. It was 
a pleasure to receive the thanks of individuals for being in- 
strumental in saving their friends and relatives from the 



296 THE TEUE PATH 



intoxicating cup. In Elmira, his native city, 9,000 were in- 
duced to sign the pledge, and in Tioga county, Pennsylvania 
—having a population of 35,000 — 21,000 had taken the total 
abstinence obligation. Wonderful work had been accom- 
plished among the miners in that locality, and revivals were 
still going on. In this State one hundred men were preaching 
temperance in the different sections in an earnest and sincere 
manner. In the blue grass region of Kentucky [" Pull 'em 
out !" shouted Mr. Murphy] the good work was being pushed 
rapidly forward, and great results would be effected. " The 
banner of temperance," said the speaker, " shall float high 
over the heads of all, and the movement will spread like fire 
through the northern districts, up the Mohawk valley and 
along the Hudson river to New York." They had every rea- 
son, to feel proud of the results that had been accomplished 
during the past two weeks. In that time 17,000 pledges had 
been distributed from their headquarters to Lansingburgh, 
Hart's Falls, Schuylerville and West Troy, but a large propor- 
tion of that number had been scattered over Troy. Urgent 
invitations had been received by Mr. Murphy to visit other 
cities before he came here, but he invariably replied that he 
proposed to inaugurate the work in this city first. If one man 
had been saved from a drunkard's grave they considered them- 
selves amply repaid for all efforts and expense. They did not 
desire, however, to stir up animosities, nor would they ask 
anybody to abandon any particular religious sect or political 
party. They came here with only one work before them, that 
of temperance gospel. The interest developed in the move- 
ment here has been remarkable, and they desired to thank the 
Christian men and women for their earnest support. The 
press was also thanked for the cordial aid and encouragement 
it had given the temperance movement. People were natur- 
ally interested in the proceedings of the great and good work 
now going on in this vicinity. Mr. Murphy had announced 
his determination to " fight it out on this line if it takes all 
winter," and the siege of Troy would not be given up until 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 29 7 

unexpected reformatory results took place. God would help 
the cause of justice and truth and the gospel temperance light 
would beam brighter and brighter every day. 

The Wilsons then sang a song, after which Francis Murphy 
made one of his excellent speeches. He said, very eloquently, 
he was grateful to Him who does all things well, and grateful 
for the fair hearing he had been given during his stay in this 
city by all classes of citizens. He had the unshaken faith in 
God and man that the liquor-sellers would in a measure co- 
operate with him in this temperance movement. Argument, 
he thought, could accomplish everything. Charles Sumner, in 
his arraignment of slavery, employed only that means. Phys- 
ical violence, instead of peaceable argument, in matters of. 
controversy, shows ignorance and barbarism. Intelligence 
and reasoning succeeded in freeing the slaves of this country. 
The next legislature may be petitioned to grant $500,000 for 
the purpose of building a new prison, when if the people 
would generally take the temperance pledge there would be 
no necessity of such a measure. Four-fifths of all the crim- 
inals were made so through the means of liquor. 

The days of impossibilities are past. People laughed and 
scoif ed at Cyrus Field and the Atlantic cable. But its " click, 
click," was in his heart, and he could not dispossess himself of 
it, even if he desired to do so, for he knew he was destined to 
remove skepticism and doubt. " But," added Mr. Murphy, " a 
greater victory is in store for us, and do not close the windows 
of your soul to the movement." In closing his remarks the 
speaker depicted the scene at the death-bed of his wife in such 
a touching manner there were few people in the audience who 
were not affected to tears. 

On Monday night, December 3, Col, Caldwell addressed 
the largest audience of the entire season in a powerful manner, 
saying : There were some things in temperance that could not 
be computed — the gains and losses arising thereby. Con* 
nected with the soul, heart and human happiness were many 
matters which would not permit of ordinary treatment. But 



298 THE TRUE PATH ; 

mathematics would in a certain degree elucidate some of tho 
problems. He had been informed that temperance was a 
money-making business, and the lecturers became wealthy- 
through their efforts. This was not so, but in his experience 
he found it less expensive to contribute for the movement than 
it had been to pay his former liquor bills. The month pre- 
vious to his taking the pledge he had expended $52 for liquor, 
and the month after joining the temperance movement he had 
only expended $25 toward that cause — his actual gain being 
therefore $27. 

The following figures, taken from the reports of E. S. Young, 
chief of the United States statistical bureau, and from Com- 
missioner W ells' report to Congress in 1869, are certainly un- 
deniable and conclusive. The amount of sales by the retail 
liquor dealers in the United States was $r,4S3,491,865. This 
was six tenths of the entire amount of the national debt at the 
time, i. e., 1889. In the State of New York, with a population 
of 4,000,000, the total amount of sales was $246,017,520, or 
the sum of $62.50 was paid by each man, woman and child pro 
rata. The yearly deaths from intemperance in this country 
amount to 75,000 ; of these 71,000 are males and 4,000 
females. It is estimated there are at present in the United 
States 300,000 hard drinkers and 1,500,000 moderate drinkers, 
while the occasional " sinilers" aggregate to 2,000,000. Cal- 
culation shows that in one ton of silver there is $31,200. In 
$1,483,491,865 (the amount of retail liquor sales in the United 
States) there would therefore be 47,740 tons of silver. Allow- 
ing 10 tons of silver to each car, 4,774 freight cars would con- 
sequently be loaded. These in a continuous line would extend 
143,220 feet, or 25 1-5 miles. If one-half of the money ex- 
pended annually for liquor could be applied to charitable pur- 
poses there would be no want at all felt among the poor in this 
country. The army of 75,000 hard drinkers must be recruited 
annually. The recruiting officers were in all sections of tho 
country, and in force in this city offering flattering induce- 
ments to thoso who were open to temptation. People stood 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKAXCE. 299 

idly by and did not attempt to remove the evil which was 
raging to such an extent under the church spires. "In the 
name of all that is holy and pure," added the speaker in clos- 
ing, "I beseech you to join the army under the banner of blue. 
You need not be ashamed to do this, for it will render you 
physically strong, replenish your purse and make you acceptable 
in the sight of the Lord. May God induce you to put yourself 
on the right side." 

After the choir had rendered, " Just as I Am," Col. Caldwell 
advanced to the front of the platform and said he would in- 
troduce one who occasionally talked on temperance, Francis 
Murphy. That gentleman said he had been very much im- 
pressed with the power of rum, and none but those who had 
suffered from the accursed appetite could know its strength. 
The speaker graphically pictured the alluring attractions of 
what he termed " infant inebriety," and the unconscious, inex- 
orable power of the craving for strong drink after the habit 
had become firmly fastened upon one, which neither money, 
children nor happy homes could satisfy. " Let us not falter," 
said Mr. Murphy, "but decide to-night to neither touch nor 
handle the accursed beverage in the future. Don the blue and 
let us do what we can to dry up this fountain of sorrow that 
is degrading manhood and breaking so many hearts. I thank 
God that he gave me a heart and a strong arm to be one of the 
laborers to build up this structure of temperance. Let all, by 
adding a stone here and there, do what they can towards its 
completion." 

Since the inauguration of the movement in Troy upon no 
occasion was there so much enthusiasm displayed as at the 
meeting of Tuesday, December 4th. There were also more 
signatures to the pledge than at any other previous time. Mr. 
Murphy advanced to the front of the platform and addressed 
a few remarks to the audience. He said intemperance visited 
the palace of the rich arid the humble cottage of the poor 
alike, but introduced misery, hunger, and pinching want into 
the latter. In a few appropriate words the temperance re- 



300 THE TRUE PATH 



former cordially thanked the press of this city for the support 
it had given him in this movement, and for the favorable 
criticism which all of his efforts had received, adding that it 
was necessary to have the public sentiment with them in order 
to accomplish the desired reform. The living testimony of 
that which a man knew himself by experience w^as the most 
effective, and those in the audience who had suffered from the 
curse of intemperance he asked to speak truly and from the 
bottom of their hearts for the benefit of the cause. Mr. 
Murphy then introduced to the audience Mr. Babcock, who 
made a short, telling address. He said it had taken him two 
weeks to make up his mind to sign the pledge. Three-fourths 
of the audience were doubtless acquainted with him, and well 
aware what his habits had been for the last ten years, and it 
was therefore unnecessary for him to detail the particulars of 
his life. He first began drinking by taking one or two glasses 
of ale a day, but in two years it required a dozen to produce a 
similar effect. He then discovered that ale was injurious to 
his health, and a friend advised him to change his beverage to 
whisky. The advice was taken, and he " switched off " in 
earnest. The people present knew wiiat the accursed stimulant 
accomplished in his case, and he did not propose to make a 
confession there of its effects upon him. He recognized in 
the audience at least fifty of the " boys " — friends of his who 
had often drank with him [" Come up, boys, and sign the 
pledge," said Mr. Murphy], and he hoped they would do as he 
had done the night before by subscribing their names to the 
total abstinence pledge.. During the late war thousands had 
gathered around the glorious emblem of our country and 
fought and bled for it. The same would be true in the cause 
of temperance under the noble color bearer (pointing to Mr. 
Murphy). The speaker closed by asking the audience to sup- 
port the great reformer in his efforts. 

While the choir was rendering that stirring song " Hold the 
Fort," and the people were hurrying up to the pledge-tables, 
Mr. Murphy called for recent converts to speak to the audi- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 301 

ence. James Morehead announced that he had taken the 
pledge and proposed to keep it. Mr. Bane said that he had 
accepted Francis Murphy's advice, and was determined to 
join the total abstinence ranks ; that he was a working 
man and instead of spending his money for drink in the 
future he would carry it to his wife and children. Mr. 
Dixon declared the speeches he had heard delivered by Mr. 
Murphy and Col. Caldwell had (to use his own expression) 
" knocked the drink all out of him." He had been an occa- 
sional drinker or "smiler," but he was glad to say he had 
taken his last drink yesterday. He had " signed the pledge 
and was done drinking." 

Judge W. J. Groo, of Orange county, was introduced by 
Francis Murphy, and made a fine speech, in which he said he 
was deeply interested in the cause of temperance, and that it 
was near and dear to his heart. The evil growing out of the 
sale of intoxicating drink could not be computed, and it was 
one which penetrated into every hamlet and village through- 
out the country. At the breaking out of the rebellion the 
people, considering it a war against their common country, 
united ; the flag was honored and the land saved. The same 
might be said in a certain sense of the temperance cause, which 
included people of every religious sect and nationality. There 
was more danger threatening the prosperity and welfare of 
the country to-day from intemperance than has ever menaced 
it from war. This was clearly proved by the statistics so 
cleverly presented by Col. Caldwell Monday night. It was 
simply impossible for language to express the new danger of 
this evil, and the speaker declared it as his opinion that the 
damage resulting annually, if reduced to dollars and cents, 
would be more than sufficient to liquidate the national debt — 
this, of course, including the maintenance of criminals and the 
loss and injury of property through the indirect effects of 
liquor. By computation it had been discovered that in this 
country 165 drunkards die daily. If all these facts were 
soberly considered the people would rise up and declare this 



302 THE TRUE PATH ; 

evil must cease to exist. Upon the day of judgment each one 
must answer for the personal responsibility resting upon his 
shoulders. 

A forcible illustration of this point was drawn by the sup- 
position that a man walking along a railroad track, near a 
bridge, and perceiving a small stone upon the rails does not 
remove it, considering it unimportant ; but a train coming 
along is thrown off the track thereby and into the river. 
Then, after the accident had occurred, the man would 
have given everything if the past could have been recalled 
and the obstruction taken off the track before the train ar- 
rived. Fathers and mothers should remove temptations from 
their sons and save them before it was too late. Several 
years ago, at Philadelphia, a large number of barrels of kero- 
sene were on fire in front of a building. A police officer rushed 
through the flames to rescue a woman, and, as he reached an 
apparent place of safety and the assembled crowd were ap- 
plauding the brave action, the wind changed, and both, envel- 
oped by the fire, perished. A costly monument was erected 
by the citizens and the heroic officer's name inscribed upon it, 
not because he saved, but because he tried to do so. In an 
eloquent manner the speaker closed by appealing to the audi- 
ence to do what they could towards saving the fallen and 
rescuing the perishing. Though their names might not be in- 
scribed upon marble monuments they would be written in the 
"Lamb's book of life and remain forever in eternity." 

The " weather clerk" ushered in Wednesday night, Decem- 
ber G, with frowns ; but despite the inclement condition a 
very large audience filled the City Hall to listen to the elo- 
quent words of Francis Murphy. 

It will not be amiss here to remark that the most pleasing, 
and one of the most interesting features of the temperance 
movement in Troy was the vocalization of Mr. and Mrs. Wil- 
son. Possessors of really excellent voices, well cultivated, and 
imbued with a deep sense of religion, they were the right per- 
sons in the right place. They knew exactly in what manner 



OH, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 303 

to render the simple, yet clear and beautiful gospel songs ; and 
were instrumental in doing much good. These same old tunes 
worked magically on many a hardened heart, and aroused 
many a conscience that had slumbered for years. Francis 
Murphy believed in the efficacy of music. On one occasion he 
said with fine effect, and in a thrilling voice, that " song was 
to moral reform what a band of music was to us in our 
national difficulty." 

J. E. Hoag, of Troy, was introduced on Wednesday evening, 
and made a manly and stirring speech. He prefaced his re- 
marks by quoting the motto of gospel temperance, " With 
Malice toward none and Charity for all." There was a time 
within his own recollection when the spirit of the above motto 
was never employed by temperance reformers, but instead open 
war was waged against both saloon-keepers and drinkers, and 
only vituperation and gross abuse used. Love and charity 
were never extended the fallen and degraded. But in the 
march of human progress we are to be thankful that day has 
passed. The principle advocated by Francis Murphy was the 
only true one, in his estimation, yet we could not be whipped 
or forced to observe it and do what was right. Many of those 
who were engaged in the liquor traffic possessed noble quali- 
ties, and were always ready to extend a helping hand to the 
poverty-stricken and unfortunate. Rum-sellers seldom became 
affected by intoxicating drink, and for that reason would com- 
pare favorably with the men who drank at their bars, though 
the latter might hold higher positions in society. Thus it was 
evident that they were men like ourselves, and could only be 
affected by those means which would produce an effect upon 
us. Love and charity can alone win them from their vocation. 
Nevertheless, while these men were generous and possessed 
many noble characteristics, a warfare must be waged against 
them. You paid them your money and in return received 
poverty ; you paid them your silver and in return received 
shame ; you paid them your gold and in return received broken 
hearts and a disabled body ; you paid them all, and received in 



304 THE TKUE PATH ; 

return a condemned soul. The speaker declared the liquor he 
had used in his own experience had been doubled with each 
successive year. This he knew to be a fact. Though he be- 
lieved he had as much courage as the generality of men, he 
was obliged to confess he was afraid of rum. lie did not 
have stability of character enough to use intoxicating bever- 
ages with moderation, and for that reason he resolved to break 
off the habit entirely. This he believed the only safe policy 
to pursue and the only way in which to lead a successful life. 

" Somewhere on this earthly planet, 

In the dust of flowers to be ; 
In the dewdrops, in the sunshine, 
Sleeps a solemn day for me." 

" A solemn day," said the speaker, " sleeps not only for me 
but for you all, and when that day comes I hope to leave this 
world without a drop of liquor in my system, and be clothed 
in my right sober mind. Sobriety will certainly injure no 
man, and you are all well aware of the terrible effects of 
rum." 

The Rev. H. C. Farrar then followed in an effective address, 
in which he said he had never touched intoxicating liquor — 
hardly knew its different names — nor had it ever affected any 
member of his family in any way, yet he hated it with all his 
heart. God had given him a nervous disposition, and he knew 
his feelings too well to dare to taste liquor, for he was confi- 
dent if he did so, in five years people would point him out as 
he passed along in the streets, and say, " There goes the poor, 
drunken preacher." Yes, indeed, he confessed it was an 
enemy he did not have the courage to meet, and that by 
taking the pledge he felt stronger in his good resolutions. He 
related a story of a mother who stood on a river bank, and 
saw her son drown in the stream, and was never able after- 
wards to look at the spot. In the same way mothers in this 
city shuddered, and could not look at " gehennas " (rum 
shops) in passing, where they knew their boys had been lost. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 305 

The speaker said, several years ago, while attending the uni- 
versity in this city, he made acquaintance of the members of a 
social club. He was absent ten years, and on returning to 
Troy, made inquiries concerning the young men, and learned 
that they were all either dead, or leading low, degraded lives. 
Daniel Ellis spoke, and elicited great applause, and not a 
little laughter. He said he had kept his pledge, and was 
never going to get drunk any more. [" Louder," shouted 
somebody in the audience.] "I tell you I have kept my 
pledge /" shrieked Daniel, at the top of his voice, which elic- 
ited laughter from all present. He said he had something in 
his soul now to help him in keeping his pledge, which he never 
before possessed, and that was the help of God. He thanked 
God he no longer craved for whisky. He declared the follow- 
ing lines should be placed, as an epitaph, on the tombstones of 
many of the drunkards in this city : 

" He became a perfect bum, 
By his drinking 'two for one.' " 

Thursday evening, December 6, Mr. Murphy made the in- 
teresting statement that during his stay here 20,000 persons 
had signed their names to his pledge, that is in Troy and its 
vicinity. He said there were hundreds still to follow, and 
asked in a thrilling way, "Are you afraid to join this army? 
Are you afraid to put on the blue when so many have done so 
before ? The color is now the emblem of all that is good and 
pure and noble. Its wearers are bound together by as strong 
a tie as brotherly love is capable of weaving. Don't be 
ashamed to don it. Be true to yourself, be true to your 
country, be true to your God, and let that alone which brings 
only evils from the use of it. I know young men say, ' Ah, 
wait till after New Year's. Then I'll swear off.' But don't 
let them forget that ' procrastination is the thief of time.' " 

Mr. Murphy then led Col. Luther Caldwell to the front of 
the stage, and after a very hearty greeting from the large 
audience, that gentleman announced his intention of leaving 



306 THE TRUE PATH ; 

Troy for Greenwich, Washington county, saying that so many 
had been redeemed who could speak that he was not 
needed here. Mr. Murphy, however, will remain in the city 
and labor for the advancement of the cause, although he is 
loudly called to other fields. Washington, the capital of our 
nation, sends up a cry for him to come. But now, just as he 
has succeeded in awakening a lively interest among the people, 
he felt that it would be wicked to bring his work to a close. 
Soon he must go, however, and that fact was urged upon the 
audience as one reason why they should join heartily in the 
reformation and send up the temperance cry loudly, that it 
might penetrate into the lowest depths, and bring up fallen 
humanity found struggling there. To the moderate drinkers 
and " occasional smilers" Col. Caldwell then spoke. He said it 
was no use to speak to drunkards, for nobody would own that 
title, so he intended to ask all those who were not drunkards 
to come and sign the pledge. The drunkards could keep their 
seats. Concluding, Mr. Caldwell said : 

" I have been a drinking man, and have engaged in the traffic 
of liquor, and when I talk about temperance I know my sub- 
ject. Dr. Crosby is wrong when he says 'let the fashionable 
saloons alone, and close up the low resorts." It is not in the 
common groggeries that drunkards are made. It is there 
where a man winds up his career, who has commenced drink- 
ing in the gilded saloons and fashionable club-rooms. It is 
there where you find the red-nosed and blear-eyed specimens 
of humanity. They totter unsteadily up to the bar and call 
for whisky, and when it is produced pay for it with their last 
live cents, then pouring the vile stuff into a glass which they 
cover with their hands, as if ashamed of the draught even in 
their degradation, swallow it at a gulp. And what is the stuff 
which that last five cents buys ? Jersey lightning ! It is 
distilled damnation of the worst kind ! Let Brother Crosby 
first close up the club-rooms and fashionable saloons of New 
York, and then there will be no customers for the lower 
places." 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 30 1 

Mr. Murphy related the story of a western man who had 
been a drunkard many years. One night he visited a meeting 
held by Mr. Murphy, and signed the pledge. Since that time 
he has never tasted liquor, has paid for his house and owns 
$1,000 in the bank. "And this, my friends, is temperance ! 
Come and sign the pledge I" 

Eccles Robinson's success at Hart's Falls was great. He 
carried the whole place with him from the outset ; and in a 
short while obtained a long list of signers. The feeling ex- 
pressed by many of the reformed men for their release from 
the appetite of strong drink, was truly touching. Meetings 
were held every night, and were very largely attended by all 
classes, the rich and the poor alike crowding for a seat at the 
temperance advocate's feet. To say Eccles Robinson labored 
well would be faint praise ; for he went about his Master's 
work with an energetic, inspired will that set all wondering, 
and succeeded in conquering all the difficulties before him. 

Messrs. Hall and Love were identified with the movement 
at Lansingburgh. Both being earnest, sympathetic " Murphy 
boys," they were able to work with considerable success. It 
was at this point that Thomas E. Murphy, the clever son of 
the great temperance apostle, showed what was in him. He 
delivered several addresses at the different gatherings, and 
made a marked impression on the people by his fervor, sin- 
cerity, and eloquence. He proved himself to be a worthy son 
of a most worthy father. 

Throughout some of the adjacent counties the blue-ribbon 
agitation was conducted to an extent that greatly exceeded 
any past popular demonstrations in the behalf of the temper- 
ance cause. The most noteworthy of these was the one at 
Glenn's Falls. 

C. 0. and David G. Frost, brothers, inaugurated the move- 
ment. These gentlemen, both comparatively young men, were 
formerly very hard drinkers. The former had been a lawyer, 
and the latter, until his conversion, had been a saloon-keeper 
in Boston. 



308 THE TRUE PATH X. 

They advocate the formation of what is commonly known 
in the eastern States as reform clubs, excepting theirs is termed 
a " cast-iron pledge," which prohibits buying, manufacturing, 
or using intoxicating liquors, including wine or cider. These 
men held similar meetings in the western part of the State of 
New York, at Clyde, Rome, Syracuse, Rochester, Ilion and 
Hudson. In the former place they procured 5,000 signatures 
to the pledge, and at the latter 3,000. One week only at 
Glenn's Falls secured them fully 2,500 signers. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 309 



CHAPTER XIX 

FURTHER SPEECHES." — PACTS AND MISCELLANEOUS ITEMS CON- 
NECTED WITH THE TROY MOVEMENT. — MURPHy's CO-LABOR- 
ERS. ESTIMATE OF THE MAN AND HIS WORKS. 

From Troy there radiated powerful streams of influence, 
like the spokes of a wheel, reaching the outlying range of 
towns. Here the gallant and enthusiastic subordinates of 
Murphy labored, and occasionally the temperance apostle him- 
self visited each place, and left behind him burning words 
like coals of fire, fresh from the altar. In measuring the 
depth and force of the Murphy movements, we must not forget 
that the vital meaning of his method is to set everyone whom 
he can influence, and who possesses the heart and the brain 
of the public speaker, whether educated or not, to working in 
co-operation. In accordance with this, each large city has 
been made, as it were, a giant heart, pumping blood into all the 
adjacent places. Troy, as a center of reform temperance in- 
fluence, must be credited, directly and indirectly, with not less 
than 50,000 pi edge -takers, a glorious head-roll which makes it 
a jewel of honor in the crown of Murphy's honor, not less 
glowing than Pittsburgh and Philadelphia. It will be of 
interest to the reader to read some of the more striking 
speeches made by Murphy and his co-laborers while at Troy, 
such as we have not hitherto given. The extracts from ad- 
dresses by the devoted and eloquent Caldwell will be of special 
value, for he brought to his work not a little culture and ex- 
perience in oratory, as well as a magnificent enthusiasm for 



310 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the work. At one of the Saturday afternoon meetings, he 

said : 

" Since I was a young man I have been placed in positions 
where it was devolved upon me to address political meetings, 
but in all my experience I never knew of one man whose po- 
litical proclivities I had been the instrument of changing, but 
upon the first occasion of my addressing a temperance meet- 
ing, three hundred changed their course, and among them 
some have taken the work into their own hands and are now 
laboring to advance the cause of temperance. It is a pleasure 
to know that some of those men have taken their stand upon 
the platform of temperance. It is a pleasure to have a wife 
come and say, ' My husband has signed a pledge, 5 or to have 
a mother say, ' My son, who has always been a hard drinker, 
has been influenced by you to sign the pledge.' I have, per- 
haps, addressed over two hundred thousand people within the 
past year. At Elmira nine thousand signed the pledge. The 
result in Tioga and Chemung counties, Pennsylvania — over 
twenty-one thousand signed the pledge. It is impossible to 
stop the temperance work wherever it has been commenced. 
There are over one hundred men scattered through this State 
who are earnestly laboring for the cause of temperance. Mr. 
Murphy is receiving communications from all directions to 
extend his movement there. The cause is spreading all around 
Troy, Cohoes, Fort Edward, Waterford, Lansingburgh, White- 
hall, and many other places are being awakened by the ravages 
that rum is causing in their midst. This work is no respecter 
of party or sex, but with its motto, 'With Malice toward none 
and Charity for all,' the gospel temperance is fast developing and 
will soon extend all over the entire country. We have been 
wonderfully blessed during our labors in this city, both in this 
hall and in the prayer-meetings which have been held at the 
Fifth street Baptist church. It is surprising how many of the 
laboring classes have sacrificed time to attend these noonday 
prayer-meetings. We feel grateful to the citizens of Troy for 
the greeting they have given us, and to the- press of the city 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 311 

of Troy, who had given J>oth time and space to the advance- 
ment of the temperance work, and many times at great ex- 
pense. I have been in the newspaper business, and know the 
worth of a column of space in a daily paper. The people 
want to know something more than /who has got control, 
Conover or Patterson, down in the Senate. What does it 
matter who rules in Washington to a woman who has a hus- 
band who drinks rum. It is a question with her, will her 
husband sign the pledge and thus make her home happy, for 
this world is growing too dark with drunken husbands. But 
my friends, I can to-night congratulate you upon the favorable 
outlook as regards the reformation from intemperance. Mr. 
Murphy intends to 'fight it out on this line if it takes all 
winter? Last night the proprietor of the principal hotel in 
this city came to me, and handing me $50, said, ( Put my 
name on the temperance committee, and if that is not enough 
I will give more.' So you see these men who sell liquor 
have hearts as large as a steamboat. If you * want a re- 
vival of religion in this city you must encourage this cause. 
If you find it more difficult to keep the motto than the pledge 
we will keep the motto, ' With Malice toward none ' uncontam- 
inated till we overcome the great obstacle." 

Again on another occasion : " I like good children, and 
it has been our custom to hold what is called a children's 
meeting, in places where we have labored before ; so you will 
not be surprised to learn that the proposition has been made 
that we hold a similar meeting in this city. As I said before, 
I like good little boys and girls, but when I see a little boy 
smoking or swearing, it is sufficient evidence to me that he is 
not good, and it is but a question of time when he will acquire 
greater vices. It is strange, my friends, how closely whisky, 
tobacco and blasphemy, are linked together. The one leads on 
to the other, and it is best for parents to prohibit the use of 
either by their children. Boys that swear and smoke soon 
take to whisky drinking, and then their sole ambition is to 
tend a bar. I know it is so, for when I drank the bartender 



312 THE TKUE PATH ; 

was my admiration, and I delighted to look upon the gilded 
fixings of the bar-room — gilded, I suppose, to make the path 
to hell pleasant er. 

" I remember last decoration day at Elmira — I was in the 
army, and so belonged to the G. A. R. — we visited the graves 
of our fellow-comrades, and decorated them with flowers and 
wreaths and other devices, and above each grave was planted 
a tiny representation of the flag under which they had fought 
so well. And I remember on that day a widow, one of my 
neighbors, stood by the grave of her son, and I recollect how 
proud she was to see her loved one's grave beautified by the 
floral tributes to his bravery. Another widow stood by her 
son's grave. But no flag marked his resting place — he died a 
drunkard. I looked at the little mound of earth, and the 
thought flashed through my mind, ' No drunkard shall enter 
the Kingdom of Heaven.' There was no joy or pride for that 
mother ; but I doubt not that at one time she was proud of 
her boy. He graduated at the high school in Elmira. He 
studied for a profession that would have paid him well, but he 
began to drink. After a while the gate of despair was opened 
to his mother, and he died a drunkard. 

" Plow sad ! Yet he is but one of 70,000 who die yearly, 
die as he died, in these United States. What an army ! I 
remember on the peninsula under McClellan, I was sent to lay 
a corduroy road, over which the army was to pass, and after 
it was finished myself and men stopped to see the men go by. 
All day long and the next, the soldiers went tramp, tramp, 
tramp, and it seemed to me there were men enough there to 
take a dozen Richmonds. Rut there was only 100,000. Now 
in the United States we have an army almost as large, march- 
ing steadily and surely to drunkards' graves. Look at them — - 
faithless husbands, fallen business men, prodigal sons — as they 
go on to destruction. And this army is being recruited in 
Troy. 

" It concerns you, then, to see to it that your friends and 
dear ones do not enlist. A young man commences to drink in 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 313 

a fashionable resort, but when death claims him, it finds him 
in some corner grocery. The drinker after he has reached a 
certain point fi nds himself avoided by his former companions, 
and he seeks others. If he is employed in any business, he is 
the first to go when trade slackens. His physical condition, 
too, is ruined. But not only is he injured physically, socially 
and in a business point of view, but he is injured morally. 
Whisky fills up your poorhouses and prisons. It seems to me 
that everybody has a duty to perform in the work of redeem- 
ing drundards. But how many of you say, ' I am not my 
brother's keeper !' Maybe you have lager or cider in your 
cellar and give it to your children. Tell me you are not your 
brother's keeper ! You are, if you love your children." 

The movement was generously seconded and aided by the. 
clergymen of Troy, some of whom became stanch and de- 
voted Murphyites. Foremost among these divines stood, the 
Rev. Drs. Baldwin and Farrar. Their time and services were 
freely given to aid Francis Murphy and his noble cause, and 
it would be an impossible matter to transcribe the great and 
almost wonderful good they did in the movement. Their 
earnest and inspiring supplications to the throne of everlast- 
ing grace, and their thrilling addresses at the meetings, will 
live in the memory of thousands for years to come. The 
laity has grasped the hand of temperance and together they 
walk amicably, doing remarkable good, in fact, carrying 
everything with and before them. The beautiful and enno- 
bling phase of total abstinence is its close connection with 
religion — the powerful and plain evidence that God bends 
over it, and preserves it. Divine aid is petitioned ; and its 
wonderful success, its startling results are due simply to God's 
dear kindness and mercy. 

One of the most remarkable discourses that was ever heard 
in Troy was a very fervent address on intemperance and tem- 
perance, delivered by the popular pastor of the Unitarian 
church, the Rev. William Fish, Jr. He said probably more 
had been attempted for the temperance cause through the in- 



314 THE TRUE PATH ; 

strumentalities of the law in two or three American States than 
in any other part of the world. He forcibly said : " Through 
the frequent changes to which the law has been subjected, 
according as the party of license or prohibition triumphed at 
the polls, the law has been brought into contempt ; the feel- 
ings of large numbers of people have been embittered ; arti- 
fice and deceit have been directly fostered and encouraged." 

In speaking of the influence of education on temperance 
the gentleman aptly remarked : " Ignorance is one of the most 
prominent causes of intemperance. An ignorant generation 
or race, like an ignorant man, seeks in intoxicating drink the 
stimulus and excitement which, were it more highly educated, 
it would find in a hundred other and better ways. Intemper- 
ance commonly diminishes as education and the moral and social 
influences accompanying it advance. The general intellectual 
and moral elevation of mankind is the aim for which the true 
friend of temperance can labor with the best hopes of perma- 
nent success. The school and the church, pure literature, the 
mechanics' institutes and the workmen's clubs are, when prop- 
erly conducted, the most efficient temperance agencies." 

Discussing the social habit of passing around wine, he said 
that it was trite to say that many a man dated his ruin to the 
first social glass, taken because others took it and invited him to 
do so, or at all events to habits formed under the influence of 
a desire not to appear singular, and yet it was literally true. 
lie went on to say : 

" There has been so much heated controversy over the 
question of total abstinence, that the plain and simple issue 
has been needlessly obscured. A great deal of narrowness 
and bigotry have been exhibited on both sides. • They seem 
to forget that it is a simple matter of self-denial just like hun- 
dreds of other, and that every individual ought to determine 
his duty in bis own conscience, according to his own estimate 
of his responsibilities and obligations. Total abstainers be- 
come convinced that many are led to destruction by the ex- 
ample of others, and they are determined to avoid the smallest 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 315 

risk of doing such a terrible harm by denying themselves a 
small gratification. And are they not deserving of honor 
rather than of the scoffs which they so often receive ? When 
we remember how many victims of intemperate habits even 
the cultivated circles furnish, and consider what a far-reach- 
in & influence the customs established in those circles have, 
does it not seem likely that the gain to the community at large 
would be much greater than the loss if the habitual use of 
wine in society w r ere to be abolished ? I am convinced that 
the cause of temperance, which is the cause of order, decency, 
and of general virtue and happiness, would be very materially 
promoted if all persons in the community who aim to act from 
conscientious motives would unite in discountenancing the use 
of dangerous stimulants at parties and on most of the ordinary 
occasions of social intercourse. But these are questions on 
which no one should dogmatize — 'Let every man be fully 
persuaded in his own mind.' Let us be actuated by reason 
and conscience and not by mere impulse or recklessness, and 
let us not forget our responsibilities toward others — especially 
toward those who, perhaps, through an inherited or otherwise 
inherent physical predisposition, are as weak morally as a 
little child tottering on the edge of a dangerous precipice is 
physically." 

In conclusion he said in a masterly manner : 

" No one with a spark of genuine manhood in him will hesi- 
tate to sacrifice his own comfort when the clear alternative is 
another's destruction. To avoid temptation maybe cowardly; 
but to thrust it upon one whom we* know to have no power to 
resist, is diabolic. In all such cases let us take our stand on 
the noble and unselfish declaration of St. Paul, and say, in his 
spirit, if not in his exact words : " If wine make my brother 
to offend, I will drink no wine while the world standeth, lest I 
make my brother to offend." 

On one occasion the Rev. Dr. Daniels, of Chicago,*made a 
glowing little address, addressed with peculiar eloquence to 
the last man. He said as a pastor of a Christian church he 



316 THE TEUE PATH ; 

had known a great deal about drunkenness and its effects upon 
households, and related a vivid narrative of personal experi- 
ence with a dissipated parishioner who suffered from an attack 
of delirium tremens. In an eloquent manner the speaker de- 
clared he wished to address himself particularly to the last 
man, who, faltering in purpose, had failed to sign the pledge 
that night. There was still an opportunity offered, and he 
entreated him to embrace it before he left the hall. People 
were inclined to be too uncharitable to the confirmed inebriate. 
One of that class was certainly entitled to more credit for 
being sober one-half of the time than he himself should receive 
for leading a perfectly temperate life, because he never had 
any temptation to overcome. The clergy and all temperance 
reformers in the past had been working upon a wrong system, 
and the policy or idea introduced by Mr. Murphy rather stag- 
gered them, but they would soon see its wisdom and practical 
way of treating the question. Referring to the children of 
drunkards, he said it would be better for their future good 
that they die young, while they are untainted, than to grow 
up and follow the example of their fathers. In a striking way, 
he compared a drunkard's life to a pane of window glass, which 
on a wet day was blurred and obscured. " Oh, you last man," 
exclaimed the speaker, " wouldn't you be glad to live your life 
over again ? Would you begin as a moderate drinker ? [Mr. 
Murphy cried out ' never.'] You can be born again and now 
is your chance. 'He will save unto the uttermost all who 
come to Him in the name of Jesus Christ.' You are forever 
lost unless you take hold of the hand of heaven that is ex- 
tended to you." Turning to Mr. Murphy, the Rev. Dr. Daniels 
said, "Invite him, Brother Murphy, you have such a persuasive 
way, and I do want that ' last ' man to come up and sign the 
pledge." 

During ine Troy excitement over the cause of temperance 
reform, an open letter from Benjamin H. Baldwin, of White- 
hall, N. Y, to Rev. Dr. Howard Crosby, of New York city, 
on this great subject, was published ; and it was so frequently 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 317 

alluded to and made the lext for discussion both from the 
platform and the editor's sanctum, that in referring to the mis- 
cellaneous matters of interest involved in the campaign in 
Eastern New York, we feel impelled to give it in full. Its 
strength and pungency make it a valuable contribution to tem- 
perance literature : 

" i If wine make my brother to offend, I will drink no wine while 
the world standeth, lest I make my brother to offend.' 

"Whitehall, N. Y., Nov. 30, 1877. 

" Rev. Howard Crosby, D. D., New York city. 
"Reverend Sir: 

In September last I addressed you an open letter through 
the public press, expostulating with you against your public 
advocacy of the indiscriminate use of wine and strong beer as 
a beverage. In pleading with you to abandon your open hos- 
tility to the doctrine of total abstinence, I brought to your 
view, I thought quite plainly, the great temptation you were 
presenting to reformed men to tamper with intoxicating drinks, 
and I pointed out the danger of doing so, even with those of 
the mildest forms. As an exact case in point, I cited my own, 
which was based upon an experience of thirty years of inebri- 
ation, and I stated to you truly, that after four years of strict 
total abstinence, the old fires were not quenched, nor the 
old appetite obliterated, but were merely lying dormant, held 
so by the restraining forces brought to bear upon them, such 
as strict total abstinence, the singing of the pledge with its 
constant reminder, a determined will, proper social surround- 
ings, freedom from temptation, etc., and always including the 
mercy of God. I stated to you truly, sir, that but a single 
taste from the fascinating cup which you are holding out for 
acceptance, as if in mockery against the better intelligence of 
the country, would unchain the insatiable monster within 
me, and lead me straight down to a drunkard's doom. On 
October 2 last, I addressed a letter to you through the mail ; 
and in it informed you that my open letter above (a copy 
of which I enclosed), had been published in several news- 



318 THE TKUE PATH ; 

papers, which I named. I also enclosed a photograph of a man 
who is 63 years old to-day, and who has almost been destroyed 
by the use of intoxicating liquor, and upon the fly-leaf I wrote as 
follows : i Ruined by strong drink — now sober — do not, I pray 
you, tempt me back to death, by offering me wine and ale.' I 
should have supposed that the wrinkled and sorrowful coun- 
tenance beneath the whitened locks of that picture, coupled 
with the piteous appeal accompanying it, would have moved 
your heart to at least have sent me a word of encouragement 
—that you would have wafted a prayer even to my ears bidding 
me be of good cheer and to stand steadfast, notwithstanding 
the temptations which your theory and practice subjected me 
to. I was charitable enough to believe that you did not intend 
that your advocacy of moderate drinking should apply to re- 
formed inebriates, enticing them back to dissipation, and that 
you did not realize the danger which would attach to that 
class by the promulgation of your doctrine ; and I had so 
much faith in the honor of mankind, that I believed you would 
retract the dangerous heresy in which you had become involved, 
as I appealed to you k> the most earnest manner to do. 

"The alarming increase of lager beer saloons throughout 
the country, stimulated and encouraged by your countenance 
and support, together with your late public opposition to the 
healthful restraints sought to be imposed upon the large 
hotels of New York city in regard to closing their bars on 
Sunday, and abstaining from the sale of liquor between the 
hours of 1 o'clock and 5 o'clock A. M., as the law requires, 
as also your late public recommendation through the New 
York press, that liquor licenses be granted to all hotels and 
respectable saloons, and that beer licenses be granted indis- 
criminately, justifies me, in my own behalf, as well as that of 
oppressed humanity, to again enter my solemn protest. That 
I may not seem to be alone in this feeling of disapproval of 
your course, I can assure you that such feeling is very general, 
and I will cite a case in point, as follows : On the 25th inst., 
an entertainment was given in New York by the American 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 319 

Temperance Union to the English temperance advocate, Wil- 
liam Noble, on the eve of his departure for England, and Mr. 
Noble was presented with several valuable presents as testi- 
monials, and while acknowledging his thanks in a short total 
abstinence speech, he boldly criticised your course as follows : 
6 To him (yourself) I say, you came before the public in an 
interview with the Tribune, and you say you keep wine upon 
your table. I tell you the devil is in that wine.' I agree with 
Mr. Noble, sir, and I now make the same assertion. I have 
reason for doing so, and have better proof than he, for ' I 
know how it is' myself. From 1850 to 1860 I was a total 
abstinence man, and was so rigid and straight in my observ- 
ance that it might be said I fairly leaned over backward. At 
this last period, fortune drove me into a hotel, and seemed to 
drive me also to stock its cellar with a small quantity of wines 
and liquors, supposed to be necessary for guests at its table. 
The tempter could not force me to keep a bar, as I once 
had done, but at an opportune and fatal moment, while 
I was suffering from exhaustion, he did tempt me to partake 
of a little simple claret wine, a beverage scarcely more 
intoxicating than cider. The devil was aroused on the in- 
stant, I was that moment lost. In less than an hour a bot- 
tle of champagne was swallowed, and before twenty-four 
hours had elapsed I had resorted to brandy. Thirteen consec- 
utive years of inebriation followed, without any cessation, 
and my rescue at last was brought about by means something 
akin to a. special interposition of Providence. In self-defense, 
therefore, as well as in behalf of imperilled humanity, and 
especially of reformed inebriates generally, I now repeat my 
protest, as I have a right to do, against your insidious and 
most pernicious doctrine. Although God's forbearance may 
be for a long time extended, I now give you warning, sir, that 
your doctrine and its following will surely come to grief ; 
not perhaps until after thousands shall ha\e fallen, and have 
been slain, but yet, not the less surely, for God in his mercy 
is even now raising up * an army with banners,' whose glitter- 



320 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ing s morels and spears have been dipped in the divine essence 
of charity, love and good will, and this band of invincible 
heroes and heroines, marshalled by such captains as Francis 
Murphy, are rushing forward to raise the fallen, to ' rescue the 
perishing,' and dry up the founts from whence their miseries 
flow. When the last wail of anguish shall come up from the 
besotted and their beloved ones, when the last coiled worm 
of the distillery, the last mash-tub of the brewery, and the 
last cider mill and wine press, or other kindred device of the 
enemy, shall have passed away forever, then will this army of 
blessed Christian knights declare their forces disbanded ; but 
never before, Dr. Crosby, never, never, never ! 

" Benj. H. Baldwin." 

A man, named Frank Brady, was led forward on the plat- 
form one night by Mr. Murphy, and he said that he felt like a 
lost boy glad to see his father. He said that it was the kind 
words of Francis Murphy that had made him what he was. He 
was in an intoxicated condition when he took the pledge, but 
he had kept it so far and he was certain he could always keep it. 

Mr. Murphy related a touching anecdote of the reformation 
of a man out West who, once wealthy and respected, had be- 
come poor and disgraced through the use of intoxicating 
liquors, and finally by kindness was induced to sign the total 
abstinence pledge, and became a respectable citizen. With an 
earnest appeal to the people to come forward and sign the 
pledge in the presence of the audience, their wives and their 
country, and be saved, Mr. Murphy wished them all good- 
night. 

The following incident will be read with interest : 

"Three old, long and lean drinkers of this city joined the 
Murphy movement just one month ago, and were weighed a 
day or two ago. One, the longest and leanest, had gained ex- 
actly ten pounds, the others eight and a half pounds each. 
The first figured up his account with the temperance cause 
about thus : Cash saved, $75 ; flesh gained ($5 per pound), 
$50 ; in feeling, $500 ; to his family, $10,000 ; total, $10,625." 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 321 

A frequent customer before the Rochester police courts for 
drunkenness was Thomas Jones (or rather that was his alias), 
who was once chaplain to one of the most powerful monarchs 
of Europe. He had just been suspended from a flourishing 
pastorate because of his uncontrollable appetite. While un- 
dergoing examination the other day a glass of whisky was 
given him to enable him to "brace up." What a temperance 
lecture was such a life ! 

In the Syracuse Journal an article appeared, which well 
described the life of a drunkard, from the rosy flush of a life 
full of glad promise, to the dark and . terrible end. It is as 
follows : 

" Fifteen years ago, there were few more prominent or pros- 
perous young men in Onondago county. He moved in the 
first circles of society, was prominent in an orthodox church, 
and was financially prosperous. He was popular with the pub- 
lic, and enjoyed the esteem and confidence of all who knew him. 

" He was one of the first to volunteer in the war of the rebel- 
lion, and afterwards occupied the position of Provost Marshal 
for this district. Subsequently he was elected treasurer of 
Onondago county. While in office,.he became addicted to the 
use of intoxicating beverages, and from that time till to-day, 
he has known no contentment of mind and has gradually sunk 
deeper and deeper into the terrible abyss, which has finally 
utterly engulfed him. 

" To-day he was sentenced to prison for fifteen years ; sen- 
tenced for life unquestionably. 

" It is with sorrow and pain that we reflect upon his career, 
and we call it to mind only that it may prove a warning to 
young men. He is more the victim of intoxicating drinks 
than of evil inclinations ; the strait in which his appetite 
placed him influenced to the commission cf evil. There is a 
sad lesson in this sentence." 

Mr. Alexander Cooper of Port Jervis, a convert and strong 
advocate of total abstinence, was on one occasion introduced 
by Mr. Murphy, and made the following speech, which re- 



322 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ceived great favor from the large audience to whom he ad- 
dressed it : 
" My Friends : 

'•'I feel a great pleasure in being present with you to-night, 
so near to my dear brother Murphy, and I consider it a glori- 
ous privilege that we are all enabled to take part in this grand 
work of reclaiming the fallen. One year ago to-day I was a 
poor drunkard in the city of Pittsburgh. But you will forgive 
me If I do not dwell long on that period in my life, for the re- 
collection is too horrible almost to be endured. I will simply 
speak of my reformation. I was traveling down one of our 
principal streets one evening, when I saw a large crowd in front 
of an opera house. Inquiry brought the answer that there was 
a temperance advocate lecturing inside. Now, I had never 
before experienced a desire to hear a temperance lecturer, for 
with them were associated in my mind thoughts of vituperative 
denouncements of all drunkards, including myself. But some- 
how an irresistible impulse urged me to enter the hall, and I 
did so. Still expecting nothing but abuse, you can imagine 
my surprise at the words of kindness w T hich fell from Mr. 
Murphy — for it was he who was addressing the meeting — and 
when he concluded I was deeply touched. I still lacked the 
power to sign my name to the pledge, however, and I waited 
for somebody to invite me forward. But I had fallen so low 
that the yoodmevi and ladies in the aisle where I stood avoided 
me, as if I were contamination, and my good resolutions were 
wavering, when Mr. Murphy advanced towards me and grasp- 
ing my hand, urged me to break off my evil ways, as, he said, 
there was hope for me yet. I could not resist the appeal. I 
signed the pledge, and asked God to help me keep it. When 
I had done so, I felt as if I had at last done something, which, 
if I could keep my resolution, would make me a man again. 
I went home and there battled with my awful appetite, battled 
as only those who have passed through a similar experience 
can have any apji reciation of. But God gave me strength, and 
after I had conquered with His help, I felt as if I had a duty 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 323 

to perform. I felt that in this world there are thousands who 
are like I was, and they are lost if Christians refuse to aid 
them. Go out and tell them they are not despised. Don't 
shun them as if their very touch were pollution, but by kind- 
ness raise them to a higher level. 

" When we speak of intemperance, we usually refer to the 
vice as it prevails among the lower orders of society, but to- 
night I shall speak of it as it exists everywhere, among the 
high as well as the low. When you think of intoxicating 
liquors, you think of saloons and bar-rooms, but I mean to go 
to the fountain head, where liquor drinking is made a feature 
of fashion and social respectability. We must first drive the 
deadly cup from such places if we would redeem the land 
from intemperance. In hundreds of thousands of first-class 
families, side-boards are just as respectable as the table 
whereon the Bible lies — the family altar, if you please. Gen- 
tlemen take pleasure in showing friends who visit them their 
cellar well stowed with alcoholic liquors. In this fashionable 
drinking originates the major part of the evil of intemper- 
ance. People that would abhor taking a friend to a saloon to 
drink are not ashamed to make bar-keepers of themselves. I 
know about this business, and I say that those who keep 
saloons are often more manly, and less dangerous to society, 
than these patrons of the vice in its gilded forms. 

" I say that to-day you can go into saloons and raise more 
money for charitable purposes than you can get in the prayer- 
meetings. This is because these men, so low down in the 
social scale, have hearts as big as steamboats. I mean to say 
they are men, and you must go to them in the spirit of the 
sermon on the mount, if you would do them good. James 
Parton says that for forty years total abstainers have made 
no advance, and Dr. Trail still further declares that while this 
class of temperance men have been giving their sole attention 
1 o their theories, the practical work of reform has been ne- 
glected. They have not gone into the highways and hedges 
after the lost." 



324 THE TRUE PATH ; 

Col. Caldwell paid the following glowing tribute to the 
Western crusaders, the bands of temperance women whose 
work is yet, and always will be, the romance of all temperance 
movements : 

" The great good they did was in demonstrating the efficacy 
of prayer. It is fit that women should work in the temper- 
ance cause. They are the principal sufferers from the evil, 
and their influence is especially potent with erring fathers, 
husbands and sons. No one feels more than Francis Murphy 
that this work is of God. Was it the touch alone of the little 
girl to the key of the electric battery that scattered the sub- 
marine rocks at Hellgate, in the East river, and that deserves 
mention in connection with the event ; or, rather, was it not 
the thousands of days' work laid out in honey-combing the 
rocks, the toil for years of diggers and other laborers that 
made the explosion possible, that should be remembered and 
honored? So it is with this work here to-day. We are only 
reaping the fruits of the prayers and the labors of temperance 
men and women for years past." 

Thomas E. Murphy delivered his first speech in Troy in the 
following felicitous fashion, eliciting considerable applause : 
" Mr. Chairman and my dear friends : 

"As already stated by my introducer, Col. Caldwell was the 
first to present me to an audience, and never will I forget the 
trepidation and anxiety I experienced in making my first 
speech, but I thank God I was permitted to enlist my efforts in 
this noble cause of temperance. I can look back and remem- 
ber our pleasant and happy home, which was afterwards ruined 
through the medium of rum and intemperance, but I trust, 
now since we have consecrated ourselves to the work of tem- 
perance reform, we have all been pardoned by the heavenly 
Father who forgets and forgives the truly penitent and re- 
formed. Each and every one of us are capable of exerting 
some influence, and it is our duty to direct our efforts and ex- 
tend a helping hand towards the amelioration of our fallen 
brethren. Let us employ kind words alone, for they certainly 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 325 

go a great ways, and when you meet a man in your streets 
who has unfortunately become a victim of intemperance speak 
kindly to him and endeavor to accomplish his reformation. 
Looking at the matter from a financial standpoint, it costs a 
great deal to indulge in intoxicating drinks, and few men can 
afford to do so. Let us then make up our minds to abstain, 
sign the total abstinence pledge, and unite our efforts in 
strengthening this gospel temperance, and labor with noble 
action in the blessed cause. The fact that a man is instru- 
mental in saving a soul will cover a multitude of sins. Let us 
work bravely on, with the motto ever in mind : ' Malice 
towards none and Charity for all.' Good night." 

Another brief address, delivered by young Murphy, who has 
shown himself to be the genuine son of his father, contained 
this "well put passage : 

" I thank God for what I see and hear and know of the 
blessed work of temperance. It is a grand thing to be a young 
man who has resolved to lead a life of righteousness, and in- 
terested in a cause from which only untold benefit to the 
masses can accrue. It is a cause in which every body can labor, 
and do something good. Young man, never start out in life, 
by drinking ale ! You all know the story of Richard Yates. 
He was a man whose abilities at one time were the pride of 
the nation, and had he never contracted the habit of drinking, 
would have a reputation for himself second only to the names 
of Washington and Lincoln. But he fell, and only through 
his confidence in himself — supposing that he could tamper 
with the serpent without being stung." 

On one occasion Mr. Murphy made an interesting speech, in 
which he referred to the educational facilities of- our country. 
He said there was no reason for poor people to say they could 
not afford to educate their children, for an equal advantage 
was given to rich and poor, and the poor boy might, if he 
chose, acquire an education equal to the son of a prince. 
Every man has the ability to educate his children. He said 
that it a man did not; put anything in his mouth which would 



326 THE TRUE PATH ; 

take away his brain he would be able to educate his children. 
The speaker said that the people of to-day were too anxious 
to amass fortunes, and after they had accumulated several 
thousand dollars they were not contented with it. 

Fashions, he said, had a great tendency to make a man poor. 
He believed that it lay in the power of every man to make 
himself honorable and independent, but no man would ever 
arrive at that standpoint till he was willing to help himself. 

Mr. Murphy told at one of the meetings of the reformation 
of a poor drunkard who, while intoxicated, signed the prohib- 
itory oath because he thought it would do somebody else 
good. In the immense audience which greeted Mr. Murphy 
on that occasion were the man's w T ife and three small children, 
and as he tottered along the aisle toward the stand the 
anxiety upon the woman's face was almost painful. Reach- 
ing the stand, William — that was his name — took the pen in 
his hand and affixed his name at the bottom of the page. 
While he was writing his wife moved from her position and 
when he had finished, threw both her thin, white arms around 
his neck and kissed him. Subsequently Mr. Murphy was in- 
vited to dine with the now happy family, and while at the 
house, the wife told him how terrible had been her struggle. 
At one time she had determined to die, but while on her way 
to the wood-shed with suicide in her mind, she was met by -a 
little infant child, who asked her where she was going. For 
a while resolution wavered, and at last natural instinct pre- 
vailed, and she determined to live to fight for her children. 
" Oh, husbands, men !" said Mr. Murphy, concluding, " let us 
redeem the past ! Come forward and sign the pledge !" 

We must bring our record of the Murphy movement at 
Troy, in its details, and its overflow into the surrounding 
towns, to a close. It has become the devotion of a life-time 
with this great missionary of temperance truth, and the strik- 
ing results of his efforts are continually accumulating. Hardly 
a week passes without adding new and startling phenomena to 
the sum total of his life ; not new in the essential principles, 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 32? 

but striking in the dramatic forms in which they shape them- 
selves. The worst passions of humanity form the back-ground 
on which the glorious results are set ; into it enter the tears 
alike of despair and joy, pouring from the eyes of mothers, 
sisoers, wives, sweethearts and children ; the misery and re- 
pentance of strong men wrested from the clutch of the fiend 
of ram, and made to feel that they are once more men with 
the right to look their fellow-men frankly and clearly in the 
eyes. 

Other strong-minded and strong-willed enthusiasts in the 
cause of good have done this in certain measure also. But 
there is but one Francis Murphy, and the work he has accom- 
plished is so extraordinary as to make him a hero and a giant 
among his fellow-workers. In dedicating his life to this duty 
of rescuing his fellow-men from the infamous degradation of 
drunkenness, Murphy has recognized the supreme necessity 
inherent in the social life of to-day. Alcohol in its various 
forms destroys more men than war, plague, pestilence and 
famine, slaying the soul with the body. The lunatic asylum 
and the prison draw from its powerful aid, as a recruiting 
sergeant, the majority of the army of wretches that fill them ; 
and, strange to say, among the refined and intelligent classes 
we find a deep obtuseness on this subject. Clergymen and 
physicians even yet palliate the use of wine and spirits as a 
beverage ; though, thanks to an enlightened public sentiment 
which is daily becoming stronger, it is far better than of old. 
Gough, in one of his temperance lectures, tells a thrilling story, 
which illustrates the tremendous responsibility imposed on 
those men whose profession and intellectual culture make 
them public guides. Mr. Gough's recountal is as follows : 

" At a certain town meeting in Pennsylvania, the question 
came up whether any persons should be licensed to sell rum. 
The clergyman, the deacon, the physician, strange as it may 
now appear, all favored it ; one man only spoke against it, be- 
cause of the mischief it did. The question was about to be 
put, when there arose from one corner of the room a miserable 



328 THE TBUE PATH ; - 

woman. She was thinly clad, and her appearance indicated 
the utmost wretchedness, and- that her mortal career was almost 
closed. After a moment's silence, and all eyes being fixed 
upon her, she stretched her attenuated body to its utmost 
height, and then her long arms to their greatest length, and 
raising her voice to a shrill pitch, she called to all to look upon 
her. 

"'Yes V she said, 'look upon me, and then hear me. All 
that the last speaker has said relative to temperate drink- 
ing, as being the father of drunkenness, is true. All practice, 
all experience, declares its truth. All drinking of alcoholic 
poison, as a beverage in health, is excess. Look upon me! 
You all know me, or once did. You all know I was once the 
mistress of the best farm in the town. You all know, too, I 
had one of the best — the most devoted of husbands. You all 
know that I had fine, noble-hearted, industrious boys. Where 
are they now ? Doctor, where are they now ? You all know. 
You all know they lie in a row, side by side, in yonder church- 
yard ; all — every one of them filling the drunkard's grave \ 
They were all taught to believe that temperate drinking was 
safe — that excess alone ought to be avoided ; and they never 
acknowledged excess. They quoted you, and you, and you,' 
pointing with her shred of a finger to the minister, deacon and 
doctor, ' as authority. They thought themselves safe under 
such teachers. But I saw the gradual change coming over my 
family and its prospects, with dismay and horror. I felt we 
were all to be overwhelmed in one common ruin. I tried to 
ward off the blow ; I tried to break the spell, the delusive 
spell, in which the idea of the benefits of temperate drinking 
had involved my husband and sons. I begged, I prayed ; but 
the odds were against me. 

" ' The minister said the poison that was destroying mj hus- 
band and boys was a good, creature of God ; the deacon who 
sits under the pulpit there, and took our farm to pay his rum 
bills, sold them the poison ; the doctor said a little was good, 
and the excess only ought to be avoided. My poor husband 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEEANCE. 329 

and my dear "boys fell into the snare, and they could not 
escape ; and one after another were conveyed to the sorrow- 
ful grave of the drunkard. Now look at me again. You prob- 
ably see me for the last time. My sands have almost run. I 
have dragged my exhausted frame from my present home — 
your poor-house — to warn you all ; to warn you, deacon ! to 
warn you, false teacher of God's words !' And with her arms 
flung high, and her tall form stretched to its utmost, and her 
voice raised to an unearthly pitch, she exclaimed, ' I shall soon 
stand before the judgment seat of God. I shall meet you 
there, you false guides, and be a witness against you all !' . 

" The miserable woman vanished. A dead silence pervaded 
the assembly ; the minister, the deacon, and physician hung 
their heads ; and when the president of the meeting put the 
question, ' Shall any licenses be granted for the sale of spirit- 
uous liquors ?' the unanimous response was c No !' " 

Again, Mr. Gough says, in illustrating the danger that lurks 
in the seductions of liquor, even for those who, we would 
fancy, are the best fortified against it : 

" A minister of the Gospel writes me : ' I was deposed by 
my church for drunkenness ; some of them had confidence in 
me and they gathered together and formed a little church, 
and we worshipped in a hall ; I preached for them six or eight 
weeks ; I then came down to Boston to buy hymn-books ; I 
met with a friend who asked me to dine, and I drank a glass 
of wine, and for three days I knew nothing, and now I am 
ruined for time, and I fear for eternity. 5 I have a letter from 
a minister of the Gospel who says this : 

" ' My grandfather died of delirium tremens, my mother 
died a drunkard ; I have inherited an appetite for liquor. 
When I went into the ministry I sought the hardest work 1 
could get, and went as a Home Missionary ; I am now broken 
down ; I have covered my whole life with prayer as with a 
garment ; I have spent hundreds of dollars at water-cure estab- 
lishments to wash this devil out of *me ; I have gone without 
animal food for two years, yet I tremble every day on the 



330 THE TBIJE PATH ; 

awful verge of the precipice of indulgence.' Now mark me. 
I don't say that the grace of God cannot take away every 
particle of that appetite, as the infinite power of God can cure 
every disease, but what I want is this : that no man shall go 
away from these meetings filled with the new sensation that 
comes to a changed man ; when the battle face to face comes, 
he is away from such influences as these, and says : * I have 
the grace of God in my heart ; I have no appetite now.' But 
let one of these men who have been drunkards and who have 
abstained for ten years, take one glass, and see if he hasn't 
got the appetite there. Like the' slumbering fire of a volcano, 
that one glass will rise into fury, drenching, perhaps, body and 
soul in the lava of drunkenness. Now, then, if I have any 
grace in my heart — I know that that has been taught in this 
Tabernacle — if I have any grace in my heart it prompts me to 
pray, 'Lead me not into temptation.' I have His word for it 
I shall never be tempted more than I am able to bear, for 
there is a way of escape for me from every temptation ; but if 
I have such views of the grace of God that will induce me to 
say, 'I have so much grace that I can now walk into the temp- 
tation, and that grace will save me from falling,' it is very 
doubtful to me whether such a man has the true idea of the 
grace of God. Therefore, I say to reformed men, Christian 
men, your hope is in Jesus to keep yourselves unspottedl 
Touch not, taste not, handle not, meddle not with it." 

There is no safety except in total abstinence, and even then 
the appetite is so strong, that only the help of the Almighty 
enables the struggling victim to emancipate himself. Again 
let us quote from the eloquent temperance orator whom we 
have already alluded to : 

" Some of us remember when we fought a hard battle for 
temperance ; some of us remember the riots in Faneuil Hall, 
when the liquor sellers declared that we should not occupy 
that platform, and for three successive nights they beat us off, 
put their own chairman in the meeting ; we remember very 
well when it was a reproach to be a temperance man, and 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 331 



temperance men Were persecuted. Now it seems as if — I was 

going to say it was becoming popular, but I don't like that 
word popular. I believe the principle is becoming- universal 
from Maine to Louisiana, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific 
slope, and it is because it was begun in prayer, and it will end 
in thanksgiving. The women of Pittsburgh before Christmas 
met together for prayer ; it was the outcropping of the 
women's crusade movement ; that phase of it has passed away, 
but the foundation of the movement was prayer, and they 
continued praying even when they gave up the saloon visit- 
ing, and what is the consequence? From 60,000 to 70,000 in 
Pittsburgh and Alleghany city alone, the past three months, 
have signed the pledge ! It is in Cleveland, in Omaha, in all 
the West, away down in Maine, it is reaching to San Fran- 
cisco, it is everywhere, and Christian men and women are 
being raised up to do battle against this fearful enemy." 

It is true the temperance wave is rolling like a flood, but 
the strength of the enemy is deep-seated, with almost an in- 
vincible hold on the passions, prejudices and appetites. Its 
roots and fibres run all through the social system, and it has 
a thousand false and smiling faces with which to deceive the 
unwary. How many great men have fallen under its insidious 
temptation! The brilliant lights in literature, art, politics, and 
law, have in many cases been snuffed out in an untimely end 
by their weakness for this most dangerous of appetites. What 
a sigh from the depths of his dispair is breathed out by 
Charles Lamb, the gentle and gifted "Elia," in these words : 

" The waters have gone over me. But out of the black 
depths, could I be heard, I would cry out to all those who 
have but set foot in the perilous flood. Could the youth, to 
whom the flavor of his first wine is delicious as the opening 
scenes of life, or the entering upon some newly discovered 
paradise, look into my desolation, and be made to understand 
what a dreary thing it is when a man shall feel himself going 
down a precipice with open eyes and a passive will ; to see his 
destruction, and have no power to stop it, and yet to feel it all 



332 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the way emanating from himself ; to perceive all goodness 
emptied out of him, and yet not to be able to forget a time 
when it was otherwise ; to hear about the piteous spectacle of 
his own self-ruin ; could he see my fevered eye, feverish with 
last night's drinking, and feverishly looking forward for this 
night's repetition of the folly ; could he feel the death, out of 
which I cry hourly with feebler outcry to be delivered, it 
were enough to make him dash the sparkling beverage to the 
earth in all the pride of its mantling temptation." 

To the false teachings in times past of medical science (so 
called) is the difficulty of dealing with the question of alcoholic 
stimulants to some extent due. Physicians hare blindly ac- 
cepted sophisms and falsities, and taught them as scientific 
truths. Could we know the numbers of drunkards of both 
sexes who have formed the fatal appetite in consequence of 
physicians' prescriptions, we should be startled at another in- 
stance of the devil transforming himself into an angel of light. 
But the change of opinion among the better class of physicians 
to-day is working a salutary influence. Let us offer a few of 
the testimonies on this subject : 

Dr. Carson, an eminent physician of Philadelphia, writes 
these wise words : " The profession teaches that it is a valuable 
remedy for disease. The graduate passes into the community, 
and in dysentery, typhoid and typhus fevers, cholera, and in 
every phase of real or apparent weakness, prescribes it for his 
patient ; thus not only fostering that fierce appetite for alcohol, 
which ceases only with death, but impressing the community 
with the belief that alcoholic drinks are absolutely essential to 
the preservation of health and the cure of disease. What can 
moral suasion do? What can the Maine law effect in opposi- 
tion to such a sentiment among the masses of the people, 
founded, sustained and encouraged by the medical profession? 
Is there a disease of the heart, the head, the lungs, the liver 
or the kidneys, that has not been produced a thousand times 
by alcoholic drinks ? Is there a single one of these diseases 
which domands their use as a remedy ? Alcoholic stimulants 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 333 

are not nee essary in the treatment of any disease. Think, gen- 
tlemen, of the five hundred young physicians being annually 
sent from this city (Philadelphia) to the various States of the 
Union to practice their profession, placing the brandy bottle in 
tens of thousands of the families as a remedy ! Who can cal- 
culate the mischief that they will produce ? It were better for 
mankind that they had never been born." 

In the- Medical Journal, of Boston, Dr. Fuller thus very 
pointedly remarks : " The use cannot be separated from the 
abuse, either as a beverage or as a medicine. We cannot pre- 
vent the use of alcohol as a beverage without discarding its 
use. I think that the profession cannot but perceive that 
while alcoholic prescriptions are so universal, and while it is 
recommended as a domestic medicine, it will continue to be 
used as a beverage, and its lamentable effects will follow." 

The well-known medical writer, and founder of a successful 
medical college in New York, Dr. Trail, thus reflects : " The 
effects of intemperance may be summed up in a few words — 
vice, crime, pauperism, social corruption and national decline ; 
and the root of the evil is alcoholic medication. It is true 
now, as it has ever been, that just to the extent that medical 
men advise and prescribe alcohol as a medicine will the people 
drink it as a beverage. The use of alcoholic drinks always 
did, and always will, follow in the wake of alcoholic medica- 
tion." 

.The Medical Times, of New York city, an ably managed 
and influential journal, thus appeals to the good sense of the 
medical profession : "The alarming extent to which alcoholic 
stimulants are being resorted to as a beverage, by the public, 
should attract the serious consideration of physicians. The 
opinion is becoming prevalent that stimulus is beneficial. 
The various quacks who trump their ' bitters ' into the mar- 
ket, are beginning to understand this, and have already reaped 
a golden harvest from a very extensive sale of their nos- 
trums." 

" On one occasion," said Dr. Blakeman, in narrating the in- 



334 THE TKUE PATH ; 

stance of a young lady, before the Academy of Medicine, " in 
consequence of the prescription of a physician, she was led 
into habits of intemperance to such an extent that in the 
course of eight months she was accustomed to take two and 
one-half pints of brandy daily. She died a drunkard." 

Professor Benjamin F. Barker, of the New York College of 
Medicine, said: "I have known several ladies to become 
habitual drunkards, the primary cause being a taste for stim- 
ulus, which was acquired by alcoholic drinks being adminis- 
tered to them as medicine." 

In the " Materia Medica," of Dr. Chapin, the following 
words have escaped the editor's pen : " It is the sacred duty 
of everyone exercising the profession of medicine, to unite 
with the moralist, the divine, and the economist, in discourag- 
ing the consumption of these baneful articles ; and, as the 
first step in the scheme of reformation, to discountenance the 
baneful notion of their remedial efficacy." 

Before the Academy of Medicine, in New York, Professor 
Post instanced the case of a patient — a young man — who was 
hereditarily predisposed to consumption of the lungs. Acting 
upon the advice of a physician, he freely took to the use of 
aicholic stimulants, became an inebriate, and died of delirium 
tremens. In this we have the peculiar wisdom of a class of 
physicians set before us. Better had he fallen by his pul- 
monary affection, a thousand fold. 

Dr. Post also employed these words : " Even as a medicine 
alcohol is ' a mocker,' and all the bitters, tonics, etc., which 
men use who would scorn to enter a rum shop, are disguised 
assassins in Satan's service." 

Professor Mussey of the State Medical College of Ohio, says : 
" I deny that alcoholic spirit is essential to the practice of 
either physic or surgery. So long as it retains a place among 
sick patients, so long will there be drunkards." 

The venerable Dr. Porter, of Portland City, Maine, after an 
experience of sixty years in his profession, declared as fol- 
lows : " I exceedingly regret the exception (in favor of ardent 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 335 

spirit as a medicine) in the constitutions of temperance socie- 
ties." 

Professor Emlen, of the Philadelphia Medical College, uttered 
these words : " All the use of ardent spirits is an abuse. They 
are mischevious under all circumstances." 

Dr. Johnson curtly said of alcohol : " I have known it to do 
much harm, and never any good." 

These and a thousand other strong and intelligent wit- 
nesses, who have made a specialty of the subject, might be 
adduced to prove that, to use the forcible language of Dr. 
Bostock, " Alcohol is a blind experiment on the vitality of the 
patient ; and supports life in precisely the same way that a 
wild hyena would, if let loose among a crowd." 

It is true that many otherwise excellent physicians, who 
themselves do not use alcohol, prescribe it in various diseases. 
They do this because they have been trained to do it, just as 
they were once trained not to use cold water or allow free 
ventilation of the sick room in many ailments, where a better 
science teaches them to be absolutely requisite. The opinions 
of the wisest scientists to-day on the subject of alcohol are 
that it aids the system, just as a goad and heavy plow give 
the tired ox more ease and rest. The system frets under it, 
tries to throw off the terrible burden, and suffers in conse- 
quence, no matter how slight the quantity taken. Any of the 
well-known poisons may be used in certain forms of disease 
with just as little jeopardy as alcohol. 

So the intrenchments, with which the "rum" power has 
fortified itself, have been built by the hand of a pseudo- 
science, as well as by the appetites and lusts of the ignorant ; 
cemented by the social elegancies of life as well as by the 
coarseness and crudity of the lower classes. The most subtile 
agent of evil, it has entwined itself through every branch of 
the social system from highest to lowest. 

It is in vain to tell men m studied phrase that they are 
ruining body and soul by the practice of drinking stimulants ; 
to prove analytically that alcohol is a poison, has all the effects 



336 THE TRUE PATH ; 

of a poison, is nothing but a poison. Where habit has taken 
its tyrant hold on the nature, the intellect alone is slow to re- 
spond to the calls made on it. The crust of custom must be 
broken by some powerful emotional shock. It is just here 
that the grand usefulness and value of such a man as Francis 
Murphy come to the fore, and stamp themselves in an undy- 
ing record on the page of society. 

A man of the people, who himself has passed through the de- 
grading and brutal experiences, from which he would now wean 
his fellow-men, he appeals to the masses with that magnetism 
and sympathy which sweep everything before them. Simple, 
earnest and uneducated, his words come straight from the 
heart, and go straight to the heart. He is a man moulded by 
nature and circumstance for the peculiar work to which he has 
dedicated himself, and he has shown a deep insight into the 
hearts of men and the conditions involved in moving them by 
the very novel and remarkable methods he has adopted. The 
results accomplished by such men as Moody the evangelist, 
and Francis Murphy the temperance revivalist are very signifi- 
cant phenomena ; and show that in spite of the materialism, 
the cynical, critical intellectuality which have been imputed 
to our age, the popular heart is as much to-day a sensitive in- 
strument responsive to the intense earnestness and enthusiasm 
of the reformer and the orator, as it was in the clays when 
Peter the Hermit and St. Bernard aroused the people of 
Europe to wrest the Holy Sepulchre from the hand of the 
Saracen. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 339 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE TEMPERANCE CAMPAIGN AT SPRINGFIELD, MASS. — A WEEK'S 

LABORS AND ITS RESULTS. MURPHY AND HIS CO-LABORERS 

IN MASSACHUSETTS. — INCIDENTS OF CONVERSION AND MIS- 
CELLANEOUS ITEMS OF INTEREST. 

After leaving Troy, where he had had so remarkable a sea- 
son of temperance revival, Murphy proceeded to open his work 
in Springfield, Mass. This important railway center and 
manufacturing town, like other similar places, was terribly 
infested by rum-shops, and society felt the great need of just 
such an electric shock as Murphy never fails, to give by his 
eloquent tongue and the indefinable magnetism that always 
radiates from the born leaders in great movements. A commit- 
tee of citizens was appointed and met Murphy on January 4 
at the Massassoit house. Sunday the 13th of the month 
was set for the opening of the meetings. The temperance 
orator told his little audience on this occasion that he was so 
exhausted by his ardent labors that he should do little more 
than direct the work, and that the main part of the speaking 
would be done by his helpers. But as usual it proved that he 
went into the task body and soul, and did not spare his already 
overtaxed strength, when he was placed face to face 
with the work itself. It was arranged also that Mr. 
and Mrs. Wilson, who had done the singing previously 
at his meetings, should continue to co-operate with him, 
and a large choir was engaged to assist them in sing- 
ing the sweet Gospel and temperance hymns, with which the 
Murphy meetings have always been enlivened. A committee 



340 THE TRUE PATH; 

of consultation was also selected, to act as a council of war in 
carrying on the coming fight, consisting of Revs. E. A. Smith, 
E. H. Reed, Dr. C. W. Anable, Rev. Mr. Perry, and W. B. 
Crook. At this preliminary meeting, the remark was made 
by a gentleman present, that the city would require a great 
deal to wake it up ; that the city authorities would raise a 
great cry over mad dogs, and muzzle every cur as big as a 
muzzle, but that the grog shops would be left unmuzzled to 
spread destruction through the city. This indicated a degree 
of coldness on the part of the city authorities very discourag- 
ing, but the friends of temperance buckled on their armor to 
work the harder. The newspaper press gave their cordial 
co-operation, and as an example of the hearty feeling of com- 
mendation with which the Murphy work was received by the 
Springfield papers, we give the following editorial extracts, 
which, written after the movement was well under way, 
shows the spirit of the journalistic world. 

" This movement is worthy of attention, not on account of 
the special qualities of Francis Murphy as an orator, or of any 
others of the leaders who have successfully conducted these 
temperance reform meetings. Men have spoken as eloquently 
as Murphy before, and as sincere Christian men have labored 
in this cause with no appreciable results. Why is it that at 
this time every effort in this line succeeds ? It does not an- 
swer the question to say that the ground was ready. Of 
course this must be true, but to our notion the ground was 
ready yesterday as well as to-day. That a good deal of the 
success is owing to the spirit in which the subject has been 
treated by the press is certainly true. In this immediate sec- 
tion, for instance, the daily accounts of the Troy Times of the 
progress of the work in that city, did a vast deal to prepare 
the way in towns in this county. But back of all this lies the 
power of this movement. The real secret of its success is due 
to the fact that its methods are correct, and its foundation is 
the one laid nearly nineteen hundred years ago by the Saviour 
of mankind. Men and women are urged to do right because 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 341 

it is best for them. Each individual is made to feel that on 
him alone rests the responsibility. No one is asked to indorse 
the views of any one but himself to be a man. The effort 
is to induce men to stop and consider their course, and to 
seriously ask themselves the question, does it pay to drink ? 
It is believed that each individual can reform himself if he 
will but try. The work of the directors of this movement is 
to make easy the way for him to try. In this city, all that 
has been necessary was to open the way. Those who have 
signed as a rule came to the meetings with a determination to 
sign. Men have not been over-persuaded by the excitement 
incident to such meetings, and, judging from all appearances, 
the work accomplished will be lasting. The effort to drive 
men away will always fail, but the appeal to reason is sure of 
success. The Murphy movement has been one of kind words, 
it has been a mission of peace, it leaves no sting of contro- 
versy behind. 

" One great secret, the important element, in fact, of Mr. 
Murphy's wonderful success, is the spirit of charity and good 
will — ' malice towards none' — with which he prosecutes his 
labors. There is the charm of benevolence in the very man- 
ner of the man. It beams forth from his frank and open 
countenance ; it is reflected from his eyes and expressed in his 
hearty, earnest, impassioned speech. He indulges in no abuse ; 
he stigmatizes and denounces not at all ; he draws men to him 
by the magnetism of love. When it has been reported that 
vituperative epithets have been applied by this or that person 
to the reformer and his work, Francis Murphy's only response 
has been, ' God bless him!' There was no such thing as 
obtaining foothold upon any ground whatever to fight this 
man in his w^ork ; and so he has gone on conquering and to 
conquer. He has met men engaged in the liquor business 
daily, clasped them heartily by the hand, and said, ' God bless 
you !' He has publicly said of them that the large majority 
of their number would be glad to abandon their business for 
something else that should afford them a chance to earn an 



342 THE TRUE PATH ; 

honest living ; and he has earnestly advised the workers for 
reform to help these people to find that i something else ' to 
do. In a hundred ways that philanthropy would suggest, he 
has appealed to men of all classes to take the important step 
to save themselves, their families, their neighbors, and elevate 
their common manhood to its God-given sphere of usefulness 
and honor. An humble man, with no pretensions to scholastic 
culture, the fervency and much of the genius of true elo- 
quence are possessed by this apostle of reform." 

Right heartily did the clergymen of Springfield take Francis 
Murphy by the hand and second his noble work. With 
tongue and pen, by prayer and address did they battle in the 
good cause under this great general in the campaign of virtue 
and sobriety against the devil of rum, that hydra-headed cause 
of ten thousand vices and crimes. Some of their eloquent tes- 
timonials are given below, as showing the impression made by 
the temperance orator on all good and philanthropic men : 

Rev. Dr. Twombly said : " I think Francis Murphy a 
modest man, possessing natural genius and the various organ- 
izing talents to constitute him a leader. From all that I have 
seen and heard of him, I consider him a man of sincere and 
honest Christian piety. As a speaker he ranks very high, 
having imagination, aptness, a readiness of utterance and an 
electrical force which enables him to completely control his 
audience. The durability of the work must depend very much 
upon the attention given to it by the professed friends of 
temperance. I approve his methods, though every man could 
not work as he does. I believe the effect of the movement 
will be to produce union among the friends of temperance, 
and while it may not lead any to renounce civil law as an 
agent of reform, it will conduce to more earnest moral suasion 
than we have recently had." 

Rev. E. A. Reed said : "Francis Murphy appears to be a 
sincere, earnest, Christian man. He has a good deal of the 
dramatic and oratorical power which Mr. Froude says is the 
natural inheritance of the Irish race. The Christian spirit of 






OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 343 

his work, and his endeavor to make it completely reformatory 
and to rest on the almighty grace of God through the vicari- 
ous atonement of Jesus Christ, is the great hope of its efficacy. 
There may be objectionable features to his methods, but we 
should let them pass. The permanency of the work will de- 
pend altogether upon the fidelity of Christain people in help- 
ing those who profess to be reformed. Mr. Murphy shows a 
very catholic spirit which is much needed in the temperance 
cause." 

Rev. Dr. Rice wrote : " I am thoroughly in sympathy with 
Mr. Murphy and his methods, and think he is doing a grand 
and good work, in which I wish him all success. He has evi- 
dently great magnetic power over people to move the masses, 
partly growing out of his thorough earnestness in his work. 
We see him in one business into which he throws all his 
powers. He has elements of strength in him beyond all ques- 
tion. The permanency of the results of his work will depend 
largely upon the amount of labor on the part of those in 
sympathy with it when he departs, and upon the support 
given the pledge-takers in their efforts of reformation." 

Rev. Washington Gladden said : " I believe in Francis 
Murphy through and through. I think he has got hold of the 
right end of the temperance problem. The work he is doing 
cannot be estimated too highly. Of course there will be some 
discount to it ; some converts will go back, but many will 
hold out. I believe in moral forces as the only ones that work 
permanent results. Mr. Murphy's bringing in of the religious 
element is putting it upon the right basis and the only basis 
upon which it will stand. The aggregate result must be 
good, as in many cases the reform will be permanent. I think 
the sale of liquor is prevented a great deal more effectually by 
the means which Mr. Murphy employs than it can be done by 
legislation." 

Rev. W. T. Eustis wrote : " Francis Murphy is evidently a 
man of thorough honesty and integrity, and of a deep relig- 
ious nature and feeling. I heartily approve of his methods 



344 THE TBUE PATH ; 

and style of accomplishing his work. ' I have known of this 
movement being in other places a permanent reform, but it 
is yet too early to predict how it will be in this city." 

Rev. Dr. Anable said : " Francis Murphy is a man of great 
honesty of purpose, whose warmth and sympathy are calcu- 
lated to reach the hearts of the people, and whose earnestness 
must impress itself upon the public mind. He is one of the 
best temperance reformers I have ever met. I have no doubt 
God sent him to Springfield to prepare the way for Mr. Moody's 
coming. I believe in him thoroughly, and think his work is 
invaluable. The prominence of the Christian basis of his work 
is to me the best evidence of its permanence." 

Rev. E. A. Smith wrote : "I thoroughly approve of Francis 
Murphy's work and indorse him as a Christian gentleman and 
sincere, honest and a very efficient temperance worker. He is 
a man of wonderful power." 

Rev. Dr. S. G. Buckingham said : " I admire Francis Mur- 
phy. His simplicity and the religiousness of all his work 
secures the sympathy of all Christians. I regard his work here 
as the best preparation for Mr. Moody's coming that we 
could have had. I cannot conceive of anything so permanent 
as the religious motives which are elements of Mr. Murphy's 
work are to make it." 

Rev. Dr. Upham wrote : " I think Francis Murphy is a glo- 
rious Christian man, and that his temperance work is on a solid 
foundation and will be permanent." 

Rev. A. K. Potter said : " I enthusiastically indorse Francis 
Murphy as a Christian man and temperance worker. Dr. 
Baldwin, an intimate friend of mine, told me that when Mr. 
Murphy was in Troy, certain men employed a detective to 
watch him, to see if they could not find something in his prac- 
tice at variance with his preaching, but they couldn't do it. 
One other point. Some people have the idea that Mr. Mur- 
phy must be making money out of his work. His pay in this 
city is very small and not one half of what it should be." 

Francis Murphy commenced his Springfield work on Sunday, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 345 

January 13, at Uie City Hall. The auditorium was filled 
with a very large audience, including many people who had 
driven into the city from the surrounding towns. The large 
chorus, who assisted Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, occupied seats on 
the platform, as also did the protestant ministers of the city. 
Several of the reverend gentlemen inaugurated the exercises 
with scriptural reading and prayer. 

The Jftev. Mr. Smith introduced the great temperance 
apostle as " Francis Murphy, of the United States." 

Much of Mr. Murphy's inaugural address was the same as 
that which he has always been in the habit of delivering in 
commencing his work at any particular place. In some 
respects, however, the orator has learned to vary himself in 
spite of the somewhat cynical criticism which has frequently 
been offered by his opponents, "that he could but make the 
one speech." As a specimen of Mr. Murphy's art of differen- 
tiation we give the exordium of the first Springfield lecture, 
which the reader may compare with the same lecture, as 
before given in this work, and find in it an illustration of the 
growth of the lecturer in oratorical resource, in fertility. 

" My theme will be real life ; I shall talk principally of 
myself, and if any hard word escapes my lips, you will excuse 
it. Osman Pasha surrendered Plevna because his supplies 
were cut off, and when the supply of liquor drinkers is cut off, 
then the liquor-dealers will stop selling and not before." He 
pictured his humble life in a cottage three thousand miles 
away. " Though separated from it for twenty years yet in 
imagination I can see it as it was in my youth. Well do I re- 
member kneeling with my mother in that cottage, the sloping 
hills kissed by the morning sun, the stately elms waving in ad- 
miration of the view ; the grand old ocean singing its death- 
less hymn of praise, that bids a thousand ships sail over it and 
leave no furrow on its brow. I had read that they sailed to 
that far off land of freedom, and I longed for the time when I, 
too, should sail for a free land. We were particularly favored 
with poverty in the land beyond the sea, and in beating out 



346 THE TEUE PATH ; 

barley I first earned a living. Never be ashamed of honest 
labor. Whatever you find to do, do with all your might. 
Work to-day is the macadamized highway to honor. Take 
the hand of honest labor and stand upon your honor. Then 
you have the strength of ten men, because your heart is 
pure, and you are not mortgaged. We are seated in the grand 
gymnasium school of the ages. There are mountains to be 
tunnelled, rivers to be bridged, and these things can only be 
accomplished by honest toil. Oh ! that I could inspire you 
to-day with the thought — I am a man ! I stand before the 
Hoosac tunnel and see the light through the mountain, it was 
work that did it ! Well, after years of work moderate wealth 
came to us and with wealth fashion. There are more kinds of 
intoxication in this world than through rum, and don't you 
forget it. The secret of a happy life is work and living within 
your means. If you are in debt to-day set yourself to work 
and set yourself at liberty." 

The orator then proceeded, as usual, to describe his life, his 
coming to America, his manifold experiences and temptations, 
his slavery to the demon of rum, and his final conversion. 

In closing, Mr. Murphy said : " I stand here to-day, saved by 
the kind touch of a Christian hand. I dash the wine cup to 
the earth to-day with all its mantling temptation. Be brave 
and perfect liberty awaits you. I stand free. Who shall 
take my freedom from me ? Rum ? Never ! God helping 
me, never ! Beyond this hall on # the wings of fate, my im- 
mortal soul soars, beyond the constellations to the pearly 
gates, where it can behold the river of life and, standing by 
its side, the trees laden with fruit for the redeemed. Oh ! the 
worth of a redeemed soul ! God help us to-day to give to the 
Commonwealth a greater monument than that at Bunker Hill." 

The same day the series of Murphy prayer-meetings were 
commenced, the spacious vestry of the Trinity Church over- 
flowing with a large attendance. Mr. Murphy presided at the 
meeting and read Christ's sermon on the Mount, after which 
he gave a short address. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKAISCE. 347 

" If a man came to him," he said ; " and exclaimed c What a 
splendid speech you made ! and what a glorious- work this is V 
it was very easy for him to love that man ; but if he said, 
i Murphy's a scab ; I don't take any stock in him, any way,' it 
tried his Christianity pretty severely to love such a man. But 
there was Christ's command — c love your enemies ;' and they 
should all engage in temperance work with love for all men." 
These remarks were made in discussing how much reformers 
were obliged to crucify the old Adam, and scourge their own 
sentiments of pride and vanity, to endure meekly the scoffs 
and sneers of the worldly-minded. 

Early in the movement the Catholic church as an organiza- 
tion did not specially show a disposition to sympathize with 
the Murphy work. Father McDermott, a prominent priest, 
took occasion to warn his congregation against attending Mr. 
Murphy's meetings any more than they would other Protestant 
meetings. He had nothing to say against temperance or 
against Mr. Murphy, only as he would disapprove of his 
people following any speaker, who had Protestant hymns sung 
at his service, besides conducting them under Protestant aus- 
pices generally. 

Many of the more intelligent Catholics, however, took a 
hearty interest in the work, and gave it a strong support in the 
city of Springfield, as may be seen from the following letter 
addressed to a Springfield paper : 

" No man with ordinary common sense, could have listened 
yesterday to the apostle of temperance, Francis Murphy, with- 
out being deeply impressed with his eloquence, sincerity and 
desire to help his fellow-men ; more especially his fellow- 
countrymen. Why it is that certain clerics attempt to antag- 
onize their followers towards this gifted son of the Emerald 
Isle, is one of those things ordinary mortals fail to compre- 
hend. Murphy's platform is a good one, free from prejudice 
or sensationalism, and no man could receive but benefit by 
aiding this good cause. Many a man, no doubt, went to hear 
Murphy yesterday with a prejudice against him, who came 



348 THE TKTTE PATH; 

away from the City Hall converted. No race of people in the 
world so much need reformation in regard to their drinking 
habits as those of the British Isles, and when a former subject 
of Great Britain so gifted as is Mr. Murphy, rises up, and 
proves himself capacitated for a leader, why should any one 
cavil at his methods ? So far as Ireland and the Irish are con- 
cerned, their state of thralldom has been maintained for these 
hundreds of years by their foolish dissensions and the curse of 
drink, and when an opportunity offers to do them and all 
men good, why throw obstacles in the way ? ' He who would 
be free, himself must strike the blow,' and whenever a solid 
blow is struck for Ireland's freedom it will be when her people 
are united and sober. That such a race, gifted and generous, 
that has furnished the nations of the earth so many leaders, 
should still be under the domination of such a cold-blooded 
race as the English, is a blot on the civilization of this 
enlightened age. I am one of those who believe the English 
officials should be kicked out of Ireland, but it can only be 
accomplished by unification ; a thorough temperance reform 
is one the means that will assist unification. Let the Irish 
take unto themselves the moral in the fable of the 'Lion and 
the Bulls.' B. 

"Springfield, January 14, 1878." 

Mr. Murphy took occasion in several of his speeches to dis- 
claim any religious propagandism, and urged any of his hearers, 
or those that might read reports of his lectures, if they were 
attached to the Catholic faith and had conscientious scruples, 
to sign the pledge under the auspices of their own pastors. It 
is believed, however, that a just proportion of the Catholic 
population were not influenced by the feelings of their 
religious chiefs, but became Murphy pledge-takers. 

A Springfield paper, in commenting on the Murphy move- 
ment, has the following : 

" For six years past Mr. Murphy has been one of the 
most effective temperance speakers this country has ever 
known. He first spoke throughout Maine, New Hampshire and 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 349 

Rhode Island. Going West he aroused the great States of 
Illinois and Iowa. Returning to the East, he began on 
November 26, 1876, at Pittsburgh, Pa., the agitation that has 
since become so widely known as the ' Murphy movement.' 
Since that date Mr. Murphy has averaged two addresses daily 
and moved >3ns of thousands of people to sign the temperance 
pledge. He has an army of aids, his plan being to put every 
man to work who has the ability and will. He wears a gold 
badge that was presented to him in Pittsburgh. It is a heart 
of beaten gold, pendant by a small chain from a head band. 
On one side is inscribed the pledge, as follows : 'The National 
Christian Temperance Union. With malice towards none, with 
charity for all, I, the undersigned, do pledge my word and 
honor, God helping me, to abstain from all intoxicating liquors, 
as a beverage, and that I will, by all honorable means, en- 
courage others to abstain.' On the obverse are the words, 
'Trust you in the Lord forever, for in the Lord Jehovah is 
everlasting strength. From Thomas McFadden, Jr., Pitts- 
burgh, January 20, 1877.' 

" Mr. Murphy's work is strictly unsectarian and non-political. 
He is as deeply interested in behalf of the Roman Catholic, to 
emancipate him from the power of strong drink, as for the 
Protestant. In his own words, ' The work is a common good, 
and all men should unite against the common enemy. The 
days of the rum traffic are surely numbered. The simple 
object of the whole work is to destroy the joower of intoxi- 
cating liquor, to impel men to live for the record of an up- 
right life. Meanwhile let every man vote to suit himself ; 
let every man pray to suit his own conscience.'" 

The audience at Mr. Murphy's first meeting was about 3,000, 
and of remarkable respectability, including the foremost 
people of the place. 

As a specimen of the impression made by the Irish orator on 
the more intelligent classes, we may take the criticism of one of 
the foremost papers of the country, the Springfield Republican ; 
without giving this in full, an allusion to some of the salient 



350 THE TEUE PATH ; 

points will be of interest. The address was characterized as 
well-planned for the opening of a campaign, as it made the 
audience feel acquainted with him by a recountal of his own 
experiences. The well-timed words of praise for the Father 
Mathew societies were of a character to conciliate the Catho- 
lics. The reviewer commented briefly as follows : 

" One of his elaborate passages about the commerce between 
the East and West passing through the Hoosac tunnel was 
evidently designed for the latitude cf his recent labors at 
Troy and North Adams, and when, in speaking of the dignity 
of labor, he declared there were cities yet to be built and 
rivers to be bridged, some people interested in local public 
affairs ' smole a little smile.' When, however, Mr. Murphy 
dropped this conscious effort to be impressive and came to his 
great and particular theme, the effect could not be surpassed. 
In speaking of the ravages of drink, of his own downfall and 
rescue, he was much moved himself, and the climax was 
reached when he exclaimed ' The pledge has brought me 
honor, manhood, integrity, self -respect. What shall take these 
from me ? Rum ? Never ! I swear it.' At the close of the 
speech an opportunity was given to sign the pledge, the man- 
ner being for each signer to place his name on a card which he 
takes away with him, after giving his name to the secretaries 
and receiving his blue ribbon. The record was not kept quite 
accurately yesterday, but about 500 signed." 

The second day showed a large increase of interest, there 
having been. 300 additional signers at the evening meeting. 
The short addresses were made by some of his co-laborers in 
Western Massachusetts towns. The character of this audi- 
ence was largely representative of the working classes, the 
portion of the community in which the reformer seems to be 
specially interested. He took up the story of his life where 
he had dropped it at the first meeting, and carried on his auto- 
biography. 

Suddenly he disgressed and referred to his pride at being an 
Irishman ; he alluded to the bright names in Irish history, 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKASTCE. 351 

« 
Burke, Grattan, O'Connell, Flood, Phillipps, and, as illustrat- 
ing the services rendered by Irishmen in the late war, he 
gave a dramatic account of the gallant little Irishman, Phil 
Sheridan, who turned the tide of battle by his famous ride. 
Turning then for a peroration to the war in which he jiow 
asked them to enlist, he appealed to all with strong arms and 
heroic hearts to engage in cutting down the upas tree of 
intemperance, and banishing the demons of rum, not resting 
until the last fire in the last distillery should be extinguished. 

It is proper at this point to refer to a peculiarity of Mr. 
Murphy's addresses, which excites the wonder if he does not 
at times talk af other matters, rather to the exclusion of 
temperance. It must be remembered, however, he is obliged to 
plan his oratorical campaign conservatively. He has adopted 
the plan of giving the story of his life in installments, inter- 
polating continual hints and suggestions on temperance, and 
also contributing such an interesting narrative as secures con- 
fidence and sympathy. His illustrations, episodes and outside 
visitations are interesting and well put, and these, with the 
artless narrative of his own life-history, insure the repeated 
attendance of his hearers, who absorb temperance instruction 
at each meeting. Like the serial word of the magazine this 
plan stimulates interest and insures a continued patronage. 

It became evident that the Murphy movement was rolling 
over the population of Springfield in a wave of popular enthu- 
siasm. The crowd which greeted the orator gew greater 
nightly, and it was feared that overflow meetings would have 
to be held. 

The attendance consisted of the representatives of all 
branches of society, the respectable church-going people, the 
operatives and workingmen, and that portion of the com- 
munity, so expressively known as "loafers and bummers." 

The contagion was common to all these different classes, and 
the pledge-takers showed alike people dressed in broadcloth 
and in rags. 

At another meeting the temperance chief commenced the 



352 THE TRUE PATH; 

exercises with a telling little address, of which the following 
are specimen sentences : 

" We have not begun to measure the worth of a pure life." 
" Some one wants to know why such a man doesn't succeed ; he 
doesn't pay the price of success ; he doesn't attend to his 
business." " With truth by our side in this conflict we have 
nothing to fear. The man whose heart is consecrated to truth 
is destined to triumph over every difficulty, with manhood 
restored and all the graces that constitute a man." " Spring- 
field seems to me a valley of springs, and the stream of life 
flows down through its midst. Though the surface is just 
now locked in death, yet the current of life flows strong un- 
derneath." He referred to Northampton as the Athens of the 
Connecticut valley, where they had been warmly received in 
the afternoon. " It is a blessed thing to be sober, sound and 
living for the right. If you are only true to yourselves and 
the right, there is no question of doubt that every saloon shall 
be closed." " The whole thing has to be done in love. 
Beautiful word ! I thank God I know what it means, and I 
pity the man with as gray hair as I have who does not. If 
you want to see total depravity in all -its natural condition, 
find an old bachelor, with a cat for his housekeeper. I never 
believed much in this doctrine of total depravity till I saw a 
man in this condition." " To my Irish countrymen I say the 
Americans are the best friends we ever had." 

At the end of the speech, Edward Foot, one of the recent 
converts, spoke briefly and effectively. He said his good friend 
Murphy had insisted upon his going with him to Northampton 
that afternoon. He had hoped he would have nothing to say 
there, but he found the town hall filled with a thousand 
people, representative of the most respectable class, many of 
them mechanics. He knew what good mechanics were, having 
stood by them in the shop ; and he had always found a good 
mechanic meant a gentleman, good husband, and a loving 
father. He had only one disappointment since taking the 
pledge, which was that many of those who had promised had 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEEA1STCE. 353 

failed to sign the pledge. People didn't know how much 
time they were wasting. He had hung around Mr. Murphy's 
coat-tails so long that he was afraid of being a nuisance ; but 
he had pretty nearly made up his mind to go with him. In a 
saloon recently an old associate had made an excuse for not 
backing him up on account of the doctor's having told him to 
take a little. 

Mr. Murphy, at the end of this address, called upon the 
people to come forward and sign the pledge, which was 
answered by several hundreds, including every member of a 
prominent fire company. 

At the prayer-meeting held on the same day, Mr. Murphy, 
among other good things, said the following : 

" I believe in being saved to the uttermost ; there is no sal- 
vation short of it. I believe the Lord gives us to know that 
we are saved. If we can know that we are sinners, we can 
know that we are saved. I don't mean by that that all in- 
clination to sin is taken out of our lives, for this is a life of 
warfare." " Those of us who have itinerated, know what a clean, 
comfortable chamber is to the tired body. There are places 
that a minister meets with in travel that he never wants to 
come back to. Be sure you provide a comfortable place for 
the visiting man of God. Let nothing but what is God-like 
or Christ-like come near him." "I never saw my father, but 
I sometimes think when I shall see him in heaven I shall 
know him. I shall know his voice, though I never heard it, 
because he is my father. It is a pleasant thought to me that 
my father and mother have something to do about preparing 
the mansion up there for me." " I wonder if I have done my 
duty since I have been here. I want to say now to the men 
who have signed the pledge to give their hearts to Christ. 
Connect yourself with some church. I don't care which one ; 
that is none of my business. Give my dear brother Moody, 
who is coming, your hearts, and God will give you a great 
blessing." - s 

As an eloquent acknowledgment of the effect of the Murphy 



354 THE TRUE PATH; 

movement in Springfield, the testimony of a prominent liquor- 
dealer, Ben Jobson, is significant. 

In an interview with a newspaper reporter, he made the fol- 
lowing statement : 

" When I see six or eight men wearing blue ribbons and 
passing by my door, who have been regular patrons of my bar, 
I begin to think it's hurting business. No man with a blue 
badge has asked for a drink in my place yet. The contrary 
statements published in Saturday's Union show that a good 
many liquor-sellers are contemptible liars. There are just as 
honest men in the business as ever stood under the canopy of 
heaven, but two-thirds of them are not fit to associate with 
prostitutes. I sell to any man as long as he can stand at my 
bar, and so they all do ; I don't think any of them would 
flinch before a ten-cent scrip. The only exception is John 
Madden, who is bringing up a family of children in his place, 
and won't allow a drunken man there. Not five liquor-sellers 
in Springfield will ask for a $250 license when their present 
licenses expire, for business is flat. Three things have killed 
it — the hard times, the license law, and now the Murphy move- 
ment. The hard times have cut down men's wages so that 
they need all their money to support their families, and they 
can't afford to drink. It isn't true, as Mr. Parker says, that 
any men have been spending from $1.50 to $3 daily for drinks^ 
for they can't do it and buy bread and clothing for their fam- 
ilies. Then the license law has proved a bad thing. The 
licenses have been put so high as to eat up all the profits, 
especially when any number of men are selling without a 
license. If the licenses were put low, and the law was strictly 
enforced, it would be different. Under the prohibitory law, 
we all made more money. It used to cost me about $50 a year 
for lawyers' fees, and the only fine I ever paid was $75 ; so it 
was much cheaper for me than this $250 license. And now 
business is falling off from the Murphy movement, and unless 
it improves I am going to get out of it when my license ex- 
pires. I don't think it is affecting the Irish much as yet ; they 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 355 

drink over my bar about the same as usual. The rum business 
is not an agreeable one anyway, and no man enjoys being in 
it. I shan't sign any pledge, and I shall continue to sell and 
get back the money I paid for a license ; but I have no doabt 
Mr. Murphy is doing good, and that it would be a benefit to a 
great many men to stop drinking. I had as lief see the devil 
coming down Harrison avenue as a drunken man." 

At another meeting Mr. Murphy introduced Eccles Robin- 
son, who had just returned from Pittsfield, stating this man 
was reformed after squandering a fortune of $70,000, and 
bringing himself to the verge of the grave. But he had been 
since instrumental in securing 60,000 names to the pledge, of 
which 10,000 were obtained in Elmira. 

Mr. Robinson then alluded to his own life, and related how, 
from being a man of fortune, he had been obliged to work in 
a rolling-mill to obtain a livelihood. 

It was not in the city of Springfield alone that the Murphy 
movement was leavening society. In the concentric circles of 
towns clustered around the city of Springfield, in that most 
thickly populated part of Massachusetts, the Murphy orators 
were moving in full force. The movement once inaugurated 
grew w r ith great rapidity wherever it was planted. 

In the town of Great Barrington within half an hour after 
the hall was opened it was packed to overflowing. Night 
after night eloquent speakers impressed the importance of 
total abstinence on the people. One of the speakers, Hindman 
Barney, a one-armed man, told his auditors the thrilling story 
of how a companion, in a drunken frenzy, seized a broad -ax, 
and severed his left arm from his body. 

There was an enormous depression in the rum-selling busi- 
ness as a result of the movement, as all of the best customers 
had signed the pledge and become active workers in the cause. 
Out of twenty-one saloons in the town, two proprietors had 
already signed and three more announced their purpose to 
quit the business and join the ranks, before the agitation was 



356 THE TEUE PATH; 

three days old. In a week's time 2,000 names had been added 
to the temperance roll. 

A week's meetings at Thompsonville, Connecticut, wit- 
nessed the addition of 250 names per night, many of those 
signing being moderate drinkers, who were induced to take 
the step through the desire to set an example to their chil- 
dren. 

At Northampton, Mass., audiences of a thousand people 
gathered night after night with very encouraging effects. At 
several of the meetings 300 names were added to the total 
abstinence list. An executive committee, consisting of the 
most prominent men, was organized for the purpose of continu- 
ing and perfecting the temperance work after the first efferves- 
cence of interest was past. 

At the first Murphy meeting in Easthampton, over which 
Messrs. Booth and Smith were the presiding spirits, nearly 
500 pledge-signers came forward, exhausting all the blanks. 

These are but examples of the radiation of the Murphy 
movement, from Springfield as a center, through all the outly- 
ing towns and cities. 

Among the many drunkards of Springfield was one especially 
notorious for his love of liquor — a " bummer," par excellence. 
He was induced to attend one of the Murphy meetings, and as 
he entered the door of the City Hall his fiery red face attracted 
considerable attention. "Have you any reserved seats for 
inebriates ? " he frankly inquired. Now the room was 
crowded to a jam, but the good-natured humor of the new 
comer was a passport to good society, and with the assurance 
of one of the ushers that his face was worth five hundred 
dollars to the meeting he was escorted to a prominent seat on 
the platform, and signed the pledge. " There's a lesson to be 
learned from the good-natured man," as Mr. Murphy would 
say. 

Mr. Murphy's operations were not confined personally to 
Springfield. Though he trusted the work in the outlying 
towns and cities largely to his corps of enthusiastic lieutenants, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 357 

he himself would go off on daily tours of inspection and lend 
the weight of his personal presence. In this way at least a 
dozen towns were made to feel the power of this man, who 
became, as it were, a Briareus with far-reaching hands, that 
gripped strongly at the hearts and consciences of those who, 
perhaps, never saw him. One important feature in the Spring- 
field campaign was the organization of prayer-meetings every- 
where, so that the full flood tide of enthusiasm was never 
allowed to ebb or abate one hair's breadth. All the aim of 
the temperance reformer bends toward the one great purpose, 
redemption from strong drink, and even in the moments of 
social relaxation the goal is never absent from his thought. 

Mr. Murphy in private conversation estimates his work as 
merely the beginning of the moral improvement of a commu- 
nity. He considers the signing of the temperance pledge as 
most generally the entering wedge toward a general moral 
bracing-up of the signer. The next step, he hopes, will be 
into the church, but, if not, the signing is likely to lead to a 
marked improvement in respect to frugality, honesty, gener- 
osity, domesticity, and other qualities that tend to make good 
men and good citizens. Not the least of the benefits he thinks 
to be the furnishing to the courts of justice of a better class of 
jurors and witnesses, while the families, employers, neighbors, 
the church and the community at large are benefited in all the 
thousand relations they sustain to the reformed men. His 
talk in public and private is marked by that charity and lack 
of malice taught in his motto, taken from President Lincoln's 
Gettysburg speech, and he declared last night that, if the 
movement could not be a success without denunciation, he 
proposed to get out of it. If anybody wants a controversy or 
quarrel, Mr. Murphy steadfastly refuses to gratify him, and 
his arguments are such as cannot be found fault with, such as 
advising men to be kind to their wives and children, de- 
scribing the delights of a peaceful home, and describing 
truthfully and pathetically the evils liquor brought to him and 
his family. He will not allow his movement to become a de- 



358 THE TKTTE PATH ; 

nominational affair, either, but states that every man is wel- 
come as he was to the army during the rebellion, with no 
questions asked as to whether he is a Roman, Catholic, Con- 
gregationalist or Unitarian. 

It was acutely remarked in one of the Springfield journals 
that the spread of the movement was due to the prominence of 
the subject of temperance in the minds of the people fully as 
much as to anything which may have been said at the meet- 
ings. A large number of the men that signed brought others 
to take the pledge, and at the end of the fourth day the tem- 
perance roll showed 2,500 signatures. The evening audiences 
continued to fill the auditorium to the very edge of the plat- 
form, while hundreds were turned away and held meetings 
elsewhere, addressed by some of Murphy's enthusiastic con- 
verts. A dramatic feature of not a few of the meetings was 
the conversion of old topers > who brought with them bottles 
of liquor, as if in contempt of any possible influence, and once 
struck by the force of conviction, they gave up the bottles of 
seductive poison in presence of the whole congregation. Such 
facts as these have immense effect, and stir up the popular 
feeling more than the most eloquent and startling words can 
effect. The fifth evening meeting was one of remarkable 
enthusiasm, owing in part, perhaps, to the presence of the great 
evangelists, Moody and Sankey, who, however, did not take 
any part in the proceedings of the occasion. Mr. Murphy said 
that it seemed proper that the Redeemer should be the center 
of this movement, and that the church of God should rise in 
its majesty and shoulder the work. But he never had allowed 
it and never would would allow it to drift into sectarianism. 
He was laboring for no church, but for the cause of humanity, 
and by the help of God he would succeed. So long as he was 
reforming men, how could any man be unchristian enough to 
refuse to help him, even asking whether he worked as a Prot- 
estant or a Catholic? The ground of humanity is the founda- 
tion that all the churches should rest on, and join forces for 
victory. The soldiers of the Revolution did not ask each other 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 359 

their religious faith, but fought with one impulse for the cause 
of justice. He took pride in saying that he never denounced 
the rum-sellers. He never called them hard names, but he 
would ruin their business, and would light his way in spite 
of them. Yillification never would reclaim the erring one ; 
love was his conquering signal. 

He wanted the testimony of some of the men he had saved, 
so he called on W. A. Nichols of this city. Mr. Nichols was 
an habitual drinker until three days ago. He strolled into a 
noon prayer-meeting out of curiosity, and Mr. Murphy had 
roused the manhood within him to assert itself and lift him 
from his disgrace. He signed the pledge, donned the blue, 
and he meant to keep it. Here Mr. Murphy jumped up, say- 
ing, in his enthusiastic way, " I know you can keep it, 
brother," and he gave him a shake of the hand that he never 
ought to forget. Mr. Coburn, of Pittsburgh, said that he had 
followed Mr. Murphy to entreat drunkards to forsake their 
w r ays or to take warning from his experience. He had been a 
miserable drunkard, but Mr. Murphy's kindness had won his 
heart. He implored the drinkers in the audience to come for- 
ward, sign the pledge and begin a new life. " George W. 
Childs will now speak to you. May God bless him," said Mr. 
Murphy. The new speaker had also been a drunkard and was 
deserted by every friend he had, even his wife, but he was 
a reformed man and he put his trust in the Saviour. Rev. Dr. 
Daniels, who happened to be in the city, was called on, and 
he said that he had examined all the late evangelical move- 
ments and he thought that the saving of drunkards was the 
best work of Heaven at the present time. . 

Mr. Murphy closed the meeting with a magnificent perora- 
tion that cannot be reproduced. The best men of the country 
are sober men, he said. It pays to be sober. It adds to a 
man's health, his property, his happiness and his prosperity. 
He begged those who had not signed the pledge to come for- 
ward and do so then. A large number came forward as the 
chorus struck up " Hold the Fort." Mr. Murphy kept calling 



360 THE TRUE PATH; 

upon the audience during the singing to' come up and take the 
pledge. " Come, on my friends," rung through the house, and 
any one who hesitated or was struggling through the crowd to 
reach the stage was greeted with, " Come on, brother*; give 
me your hand ; God bless you !" 

The prayer-meeting of the same day was made specially 
enjoyable and stimulating by the presence of the distinguished 
evangelists Moody, Sankey, Whittle, and McGranahan. 

Mr. Moody first expounded in a characteristic manner a 
portion of .the 1035th Psalm. " The Lord forgiveth all our 
iniquities." If you are going to be his child, it is not enough 
to give up one sin, perhaps the sin is drunkenness ; we want 
all our sins forgiven and the Lord makes thorough work of it. 
Some say the appetite for drink is inherited ; no doubt it is, 
sometimes, but God healeth all our diseases. You may bind 
up a wound, but the wound is there until it is healed ; God 
heals. Next, He "redeemeth thy life from destruction," (who 
can say that like the man who has been down into the ditch ?) 
then " He crowneth thee." There are many crowned heads 
that are uneasy : but Christ " satisfieth " us, and w T hat more 
can there be than that ? See the five precious promises com- 
pressed into three verses of the psalm — God will forgive, heal, 
redeem, crown and satisfy us. After Mr. Murphy had read 
numerous requests for prayer, a fervent petition was offered 
by Mr. Moody, followed by prayers by Rev. A. K. Potter, 
Mr. Sankey, and Mr.- Murphy. Mr. Sankey then sang a 
touching little song by the late P. P. Bliss, which recalled to 
Mr. Murphy a sad incident in his own life — the death of his 
child. He also told how he first heard of Moody from an 
outcast, who exclaimed, " Oh ! I wish you could hear him. 
He didn't graduate, but he preaches ! " And when he did 
hear him in Portland, it almost seemed to him that Christ had 
returned to earth, there was so much of Christ in his words. 
After Mr. Murphy had spoken, Mr. Sankey sang very 
tenderly, " The Ninety and Nine ; " and, succeeding several 
short addresses, Mr. Moody was called up again. He said he 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 361 

was heartily in sympathy with every man who is seeking 
Christ ; tired and sick of all the forms "and paraphernalia that 
don't bring men to Christ. He had no faith in half-way ref- 
ormations ; men must make an unconditional surrender to 
Christ and lay hold of His strength. We have heard of reform 
in politics, reform in temperance, reform, reform, reform, re- 
form, reform. Let us have a new word — regeneration. Heaven 
is filled with Christ ; born people. May God bless this work, 
and convert to Him all whose hearts are touched by it. The 
meeting closed with a few eloquent words by Major Whittle 
and Rev. W. H. Daniels of Chicago. 

Among the especially interesting features of the Springfield 
revival was the conversion of a young man named Edward 
Foot. When it was announced that Edward Foot would speak 
to the audience, uproarious applause continued until he arose 
and advanced to the front of the platform. His speech was 
very effective. He said he had been a hard drinking man for 
some time. He had heard of Murphy before he came to Mas- 
sachusetts, and the booming of his doings in the West had ex- 
cited his derision. He had considered Murphy a mere fanatic. 
After he had arrived in Springfield, he thought he would drop 
in and hear him. So last Wednesday night he went into the 
hall. 

Mr. Murphy gained his 'sympathies. He was persuaded by 
his urgent appeals, and he signed the pledge, renouncing for- 
ever the no longer tempting cup. He attended the noon 
prayer-meetings, and every one strengthened his new life. He 
said he could be depended on to stand firm and stick to his 
pledge. " If any one tells you," said he, •' Ned Foot has been 
seen hereafter to take a glass of intoxicating drink, tell him, 
from me, he is a liar." Not even Murphy himself could draw 
forth so much enthusiasm as that which greeted the pug- 
nacious young convert. The ladies waved their handkerchiefs. 
One of the clergymen proposed three cheers for him, and the 
entire audience responded, Mr. Murphy adding a " tiger " and 
waving his hat. The impressment of Mr. Foot in the tern* 



362 ■ THE TKUE PATH; 

perance ranks had a powerful effect on other young men, he 
being the youngest son of one of the prominent men of Spring- 
field. 

At the same meeting Dr. Rankin, an Elmira convert, told a 
witty anecdote. He was walking through the streets shortly 
after signing the pledge, with a blue ribbon in his button-hole, 
when one loafer asked another who he was. The reply was : 
" Oh, he's one of Murphy's babies !" " I am one of Murphy's 
babies," said the doctor, " but I have been weaned from the 
bottle." 

As a pleasing illustration of Mr. Murphy's ease and power 
of adaptability we give the points of an address made at one 
of the noon-day prayer meetings : 

He read the parable of the prodigal son, and his subsequent 
address was a familiarly told picture of the career of such a 
prodigal now-a-days. He first described a young couple be- 
ginning life in moderate circumstances. The father feels the 
need of a better education and is determined his son shall have 
one. But the boy developes an astonishing antipathy to work 
— a great inclination to sit down, to lean up against build- 
ings, and that is the first sign that he is graduating towards 
a liquor-saloon. Mr. Murphy described the gradual widening 
of a breach between the boy and his father, till the former is 
given his share of the estate and sets -out for himself — leaves, 
perhaps, for California. At almost every point Mr. Murphy , 
was able to suggest a moral lesson. There was one to be 
learned from the persistency of the hackman, as the young 
man stepped from the train. " If they have anything to do, 
they do it, and they attend to their business at the right time. 
There is no use crying ' hack ' at the depot when there are no 
people there." Well, the young man goes into a hotel, and 
then into the bar-room. There is a lesson to be learned from 
the bar-keeper, too, always good-natured. But the prodigal's 
money was soon all gone ; then his friends go. With no 
friends, no one wants him. The door of honest labor is shut 
against him, Without friends, without employment, he puts 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 363 

on a high collar, the representative of a clean shirt, but it 
doesn't go very far down. He makes an effort to be some- 
body again. He goes out on the street, a man with the livery 
of rum on him, making the best appearance he can, a spirit too 
proud to yield, with a will that cannot be conquered . The 
chains of the accursed fiend are upon him ; he is a man yet, 
but laughed at. You have passed him by without help. 
While there is bread to spare in Springfield, men have gone 
out to feed the swine. He came to himself. Think of it, 
men ! There is manhood and honor left to you to-day, and if 
you will you may return and be saved. 

At another of these prayer-meetings, Mr. Murphy spoke as 
follows : 

" When I was going to school it was distasteful to me to 
find the answer to a sum the teacher might give me. That is 
the reason I was never worth a cent in figures. Those things 
in God's word that ask us to deny ourselves are distasteful to 
us and we say they are not meant for us, they are meant for 
some one else. We will never be worth anything as Christians 
till we take these things home to ouselves." "I welcome any 
discipline that will make me a faithful Christian, I do. When 
you see a block of granite just blasted out of the rock you. 
think it can never be fitted for use, but chisel and square and 
compass will do it, and when it is ready it swings perfect into 
its place." " There are men who say, ' keep temperance out 
of religion ;' you never offended anybody by pure religion, you 
have offended by your hypocrisy." 

Prayers were requested for a young man, who, having 
signed the pledge, was tempted to drink a glass of claret at a 
private house, and Mr. Murphy said, " I hope you will remem- 
ber there are saloons in your houses. Give the saloons on the 
streets a rest and fight these home saloons. You expect people 
to come from the East and West and save your sons, you must 
do it yourselves. I used to spell the Lord's name in small 
capitals and my own in large ones." 

The full fruition period of the temperance excitement on 



364 . THE TEUE PATH; 

the last day of the week's campaign, made it clear that not less 
than five thousand names would be the harvest reaped by Mr. 
Murphy. 

Saturday night's audience was a magnificent one, full of en- 
thusiasm, and made up largely of mechanics and railroad men. 

Edward Foot, who had already been a prominent figure in 
the Springfield work, was the first orator of the evening. He 
appealed especially to the men, whom he characterized as the 
"finest men in the world — mechanics," and enlarged on the 
powerful influence that temperance would have in their own 
worldly and social life, as well as the solid force which they 
again, as a class, would exercise in extending and fertilizing 
the roots of the temperance cause. He told his friends that 
he never had so good a time before, and he was anxious to 
see the forty or fifty men who had promised him they would 
sign, come forward and redeem their pledges. At the close 
of these remarks the audience was excited to a high pitch of 
enthusiasm by seeing a solid little battalion press forward to 
the pledge-table. 

Later in the evening Mr. Homer Foot, father to the previous 
orator, said he was glad to sanction the work by his presence 
and influence, and that he felt particularly grateful to the 
great temperance evangelist, who was doing more for tem- 
perance in Springfield than any man had ever done before. 
He wished him success in his labors elsewhere, and hoped the 
people of the city would carry on the work in the spirit of 
love, relying on help from above. 

Francis Murphy's closing meeting was a magnificent ova- 
tion, and the City Hall was uncomfortably packed by an ex- 
cited audience, to pay- their parting respect to the man who 
had wrought so glorious a work in their midst. It was then 
announced that he would leave Springfield to open his work 
in Washington, but that he would return to Springfield. Mr. 
Murphy expressed the hope that the temperance interest would 
not be allowed to die out with his departure, but that they 
should continue earnest in prayer and work. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 365 

It was also stated that Mr. Murphy's lieutenant, Eccles 
Robinson, would remain in the vicinity to organize further the 
temperance movement. A tribute, drawn up by the Rev. Dr. 
Buckingham, and signed by all of the ministers who had been 
connected with the work, was enthusiastically adopted. 

" As citizens of Springfield, we desire to express our grateful 
acknowledgments to Mr. Francis Murphy for his temperance 
work in this city. 

" c With malice toward none, with charity to all, 5 with kind 
and winning manner, w T ith an eminently Christian spirit and 
Christian motives and Christian modes of working, and, above 
all, with the manifest blessing of God attending his labors, he 
has secured the profound respect and lasting gratitude of this 
community, so that his will always be a cherished name among 
our citizens, ministers and churches, and a household word in 
many a home. With this expression of our gratitude to him 
for his work among us, and gratitude to God who has so richly 
blessed it, we commend him to other communities and 
churches wherever in the providence of God he shall be called 
to labor. 5 ' 

Rev. Dr. Twombly made a brief address, congratulating Mr. 
Murphy and rehearsing the cause the city had for congratula- 
tion on his visit. He closed by the remark that Mr. Murphy 
could say, in the sententious words of Caesar, " I came, I saw, 
I conquered ! 55 

Mr. Murphy replied : "I had not been prepared for such a 
splendid reception, and words of commendation that I have re- 
ceived from the clergymen of your city. I have been wonder- 
fully surprised by the grand demonstration you have given us 
of your appreciation of our work. We came strangers and 
are now friends. I am sorry to go, lam. [A voice — 'Stay 
with us. 5 ] I want to. 

i i \ My willing soul would stay 
In such a place as this, ' 



« 



In its flight through the upper deep. God must prepare the 



366 THE TRUE PATH; 

soul for greater capacity of enjoyment, else Heaven could not 
be more enjoyable than this. Since I have been here I have 
hardly wanted to go to bed, so interested was I in the work. 
Now, after listening to these Christian giants, these men of 
skill who have stepped out and gathered up every head of 
wheat and stamped it and garnered it, I hardly feel as if there 
was anything left for me to say. There is nothing like the 
song of a redeemed man, and I will introduce to you Charles 
Graham." 

Mr. Graham related his experience. How by drinking he 
had lost his friends, his reputation, his money and a good 
position, as engineer on the Boston and Albany railroad, mak- 
ing a once happy home unhappy. But he had signed the 
pledge and he and his wife are once more happy. He hasn't 
drank for five days. When Mr. Murphy came to the city he 
heard him, and told his wife that it brought tears to his eyes. 
She said : " If there is a man in the city that can bring tears 
to your eyes, don't miss a meeting." And he hasn't, and signed 
the pledge and will keep it, and retrieve all that he has lost — 
with the help of God. 

Again Mr. Murphy said : " We have no word of quarrel 
with any man who sells liquor. If he wants to sell, let him, 
but we have got through buying. Who would have thought 
this man could have made such an eloquent speech ? Why, if 
I wanted Ned Foot to take Richmond, he would take it !" 
Calling up Mr. Foot he spoke briefly, saying that it would be 4 
one week by Wednesday night at half -past 10 o'clock since he 
signed the pledge. He had enjoyed every moment of the 
time, and had gathered strength. He had visited several men 
and boys during the day that wanted encouragement, and had 
had several mothers urge him to speak to their sons. He pre- 
ferred that work to public speaking. He closed with saying : 
" If I fail to accomplish what I wish, it is not for want of the 
heart, but of ability." 

The reformer's farewell address opened with Longfellow's 
lines. "Life is real, life is earnest." He returned thanks to 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERAKCE. 367 

all who have aided his work, especially to the press and to the 
ministers for the completeness of their arrangements. "It 
is easy for a man, when his team is hitched up and stand- 
ing at his door, to jump in and drive through your 
streets. This is what I have done. Your ministers had 
the thing completely arranged, and all I had to say was 
' Come on !' and they came. In my experience of seven years 
of travel, I have sometimes been committee, chairman and 
speaker. There is such a thing as a day of small things, as 
when I was travelling through this country with a pair of 
shoes not made for me. I never stopped then more than one 
night in a place. I had no capital. The day came when God 
increased my capital. Let me say to young reformers that 
they need not be discouraged if they cannot start out with 
four or five addresses ; all you need is one single address. 
Read the people your own book, and if you are humble and 
are often on your knees, God will help you. Through Chan- 
cellor Wood's invitation I went to Pittsburgh. The police 
court there used to have a daily attendance of 75, and we got 
it down to two and three a day. From Pittsburgh we w T ent to 
Philadelphia, and then to Troy, and from there to Springfield. 
I am glad I came to Springfield. It has been the happiest 
w r eek of my life. It is a wonderful field. Connecticut, Ver- 
mont and New Hampshire are opened up to us. You have 
had a week of prayer, and everything has been done to help. 
This audience is the most remarkable one I ever witnessed for a 
paying audience. Why shouldn't I feel well ? As long as I live, 
Springfield shall be precious to my heart. I shall miss the noon- 
day prayer meetings, most of all. I am somewhat tired, and 
I know you love me well enough to excuse me from speaking 
to injure myself. I was ill all last night, and am not yet strong. 
"There are some things we remember more than others. 
One of the most touching things in my experience occurred at 
the noon prayer-meeting to-day, when a little twelve-year-old 
boy came to me and said : ' I want you to pray for me and 
my father. 5 I can never forget it — it will be an inspiration to 



368 THE TEUE PATH ; 

me wherever I go. On Sunday evening I went by invitation 
to the home of Edward Foot. I shall nevet forget his noble 
mother, as she came forward and said to me, ' Mr. Murphy, 
you are welcome to my house.' Then his father gave me a 
warm welcome, and we retired after tea to the parlor and 
sang, c Nearer, My God, to Thee.' That is one of the hand- 
somest pictures I can present to you of the beauties of a sober 
life. Edward was there, with his pledge in his pocket, saved 
by the grace of God, I hope forever. 

'"It seems sometimes to me as if I hadn't long to stay; I 
should like to have all these ministers near me when I die. If 
I should die on the platform, there is no place I should rather 
die in than on the platform, doing the best I could for the 
right. It is worth something to me to receive such an indorse- 
ment as this here to-night. It would take the genius of a 
Michael Angelo to draw the pictures that have come to me by 
a life of sobriety, and opened to me a life of honor and use- 
fulness. The last words of my wife were, ' Don't separate my 
children ; meet me in heaven.' For five months after her 
death I struggled along to keep the family together. Some- 
times we had two meals a day ; sometimes not so much." He 
further pictured his poverty at that time, but added, " Through 
all these dark days I had Christ in my heart. It pays to sign 
the pledge. To-day I am able, by the grace of God, to see 
something of the beauty of the world around us because the 
scales have been taken from my eyes." He described his going 
to the White Mountains when his trunk was a regular bar in 
its supply of liquors, and when he got there he knew nothing 
of what he saw. But upon a subsequent visit, three years ago, 
when sober, the foundations of his soul were thrilled with the 
view, and, drinking from a cool mountain spring, in which 
was reflected the verdure and flowers about, he exclaimed, 
'Blessed be God, I am a sober man, and can see its beauty !' ' 

Over two hundred people of all ages and classes gathered at 
the depot the next day to bid good-bye to Francis Murphy, 
who took the train to New York, en route for Washington. 



^E, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 369 

The people sang, "In the Sweet By-and-By," and "Nearer, My 
God, to Thee." 

Mr. Murphy shook hands with many, kissed some, and the 
cars bore him out of sight, leaving him a fragrant memory in 
the minds and hearts of thousands of people. 

The following miscellaneous incidents and extracts from 
addresses will be of interest to the reader : 

John C. Love of Philadelphia spoke on one occasion, and his 
address was also a bit of personal history — the history of a 
reformed man. For twenty-five years he had been a drinker, 
and for fifteen years a moderate one, but the' latter ten years 
of the twenty-five Avere full of bitter fruit, the natural conse- 
quences of a cultivated appetite for strong drink. He had con- 
sulted physicians in vain, when he went to hear Murphy and 
signed the pledge. He did everything to keep the pledge, even 
to drinking lime water, and he kept it. Murphy left 110,000 
signers of the pledge in Philadelphia, and he was one of them, 
and his was one of the 20,000 happy families on that account. 

At another meeting, Rev. A. D. Mayo said that he would 
have helped in the Murphy efforts but for want of time. 
However, he deprecated the sectarian tendency of the move- 
ment, and the relating to an indiscriminate crowd of repul- 
sive experiences. The prodigal son didn't go into the rem- 
iniscence business after he had dined from the fatted calf ; 
St. Paul rarely referred to his earlier career, and then only in 
a clause or so. The press is at fault for publishing murders, 
robberies and licentious descriptions, whereby children get the 
idea that it is quite the thing to be wicked, and then repent 
and reform. Murphy does not so much offend in this respect, 
but othe'r lecturers do, effecting more harm than good. The 
speaker didn't take any stock in a man's being reformed 
because he joined the church. Praise and prayer-meetings 
bore a man after a while. What we need is a reading-room 
in every ward, where books, papers and simple amusements 
may be had. We should infuse temperance into our children 
as they grow up and show them its beneficent nature. Sevens 



370 THE TRUE PATH ; 

eighths of the children now are brought up in such a way as to 
tend toward sensuous habits. 

The following happy and sensible bit is from Murphy him- 
self : 

'• There is no man," he said, " who is not convinced that it 
is wrong to drink, but many will take a little. I am not here 
to bombard the respectable drinkers. Perhaps some men can 
take a glass and never be hurt. I can't. You say I am a 
weak man. Well, I am strong enough to get along without 
it. To deny himself anything because it does his brother hurt 
is the grandest good a man can do. A Christian man, with 
glass in hand, says he only takes a little, but he takes all he 
wants, and that is all the drunkard takes. Do away with the 
social glass for your brother's sake. Instead of spending 
money for liquor for diversion, have your diversion at home. 
It doesn't cost much to make home happy." 

On one occasion, at Northampton, Mr. Foot began by saying 
that when Mr. Murphy asked him to speak, he replied he didn't 
want to, but he said he must. "I thought he was cruel," he 
continued, " just as when, the other day, I asked him to let me 
break off easy, and he said I couldn't, I must break square off 
at once. I didn't mean to be captured by Mr. Murphy till he 
was about ready to go away, but he got me. Never in my 
life have I had such an ovation ; it is a great deal more than 
I deserve. As I was going up State street after the meeting 
I met Charlie Wright, one of the policemen, who appeared to 
be getting ready to arrest me. I exclaimed, c I haven't been 
doing anything wrong.' c Yes, you have been doing something,' 
he replied, 'you have signed the pledge ; you are a good boy, 
and I respect you for it ; I heard of it up by the armory.' 
And I had only just got out of the hall. Then I began to 
take in the noon prayer-meetings, and I felt better every one. 
Now, boys, you were only waiting for me to start out ; you 
called me a good fellow ; now I want you to step up and sign 
and prove that you think so. Since I took the pledge my 
gray-haired father, who is pretty well known in this town, is 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 3?1 

the happiest man on earth. Everything is growing pleasant 
to me. I have made up my mind that I have turned over a 
new leaf, and, with the help of God, I am going to stick. If 
I have set an example for any one that is as miserable as I 
have been for the last ten years, I thank my Heavenly Father 
for it. Now, I hope that people will put all the detectives 
on my track they please. If you are going to fight the enemy, 
you must go where the enemy is. So, if you see me going 
into Morey's restaurant, or the Massasoit house, or the 
Belmont, and any one says they saw Ned Foot taking a drink 
there, you tell them they are liars." In conclusion, Mr. Foot 
said that since he signed he had got a large number of recruits, 
commercial travellers and others, noble men, every one of them, 
who were ready to sign ; and he thanked the noble men and 
women who had been so kind to him. The attention of the 
great audience throughout was almost breathless, the silence 
being broken frequently by Mr. Murphy's pious ejaculations. 
At the point where Foot thanked God for being able now to 
set a better example than he had set, at Murphy's suggestion, 
three rousing cheers were given him ; and at the close there 
was an outbreak of applause and hurrahs, with the waving of 
many handkerchiefs, that marked the most enthusiastic point 
yet reached. 

Frank Brady, of Philadelphia, a man who was reformed by 
Francis Murphy's efforts, spoke manfully and well at one of 
the meetings, giving a glance at his past life. As a boy of 
fifteen years he began work in a saloon, setting nine-pins, etc. 
For nearly twenty years, till last April, he had been in the sa- 
loon business, and it had brought him to the gutter. He went 
into the civil war and came out without a scar, but his war 
with King Alcohol had left him with the marks of a drunkard. 
He was suspended from office three times for intoxication, and 
finally was removed. He became a deputy United States mar- 
shal, but lost that position, too, by drunkenness. He was on 
a grand drunk when Mr. Murphy came to Philadelphia, and 
he went in a drunken condition to hear him. He had not been 



372 THE TEUE PATH ; 

to church four times in twelve years. Mr. Murphy saw him 
at the meeting, called him to the front, and by his personal 
urging he signed the pledge. He pictured his suffering the 
next day when he felt his old thirst for liquor, but he kept the 
pledge, and Mr. Murphy sent his son Edward to be with him 
day after day to see that he kept his pledge. He closed by 
comparing Murphy to Washington ; the latter saved his coun- 
try from England's grasp, but Murphy has saved his thousands 
from the rule of rum and brought them to sobriety and to 
God. 

Mr. Johnson, a glass-cutter, well known in Springfield as a 
notorious drunkard, addressed a meeting as follows : 

"I am well known in this city, and perhaps not with any 
great reputation other than a drunkard. The rich men of this 
city are not richer than I am to-day. Though the coat I have 
on is ragged, I shall not wear another till I earn it. I have 
planted evil and reaped misery for twenty-five years. Yester- 
day I planted the seed of a better life. You must not look for 
the fruit yet, but in time you shall be your own judges whether 
it was done for effect or not. This little badge of blue that I 
wear is not on the breast of a drunkard to-day, but on the 
breast of a man, and it is not only a badge, but a shield." He 
was loudly applauded and took Mr. Murphy by the hand as he 
closed, saying, " Bless you, my father." Mr. Murphy said, " I 
would rather have this honor than all the honors of Michael 
Angelo." " You people ought to come up to the support of 
your ministers. I will come back from Washington to lecture 
vou about that." 

Temperance was the theme at the jail-meetings. Under the 
auspices of the chaplain, Rev. Dr. Rice, assisted by several of 
Murphy's men, more than half of the entire number of pris- 
oners, sixty-eight in number, signed the temperance pledge. 

The Springfield Union published a communication from an 
Irishman, full of sly humor, which is worthy of quotation : 
" To the Editor of The Union : 

"You see, sir, I am a very patriotic individual. Yes, sir, I 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 373 

love the great republic — the land of the free, the home of the 
brave. The land that was baptized by the blood of the 
fathers in olden times, as well as of the sons in later years. 
I love the color of the flag, its red, white and blue, its stars 
and stripes ; yes, sir, it is the loveliest banner that floats on 
the habitable globe. I love to see its coffers always full, and 
debts paid as per agreement. But do you see, sir, there are 
breakers ahead? From what source does the government 
derive its greatest revenue ? The answer is from whisky and 
tobacco. And what class of men use the most of these ? The 
poor. What class, then, does the most to support the govern- 
ment ? The poor toper. O dear, O dear, if Francis Murphy 
keeps on with his work, the support of the government must 
be transferred from the shoulders of the poor, to those of the 
rich, a terrible thing to contemplate. Mr. Murphy, I say, sir, 
do you see what we are coming to if ye keep on ? Mike." 

We cannot close our account of the work which radiated 
from the city of Springfield without some reference to what 
occurred in the outside cities and villages. 

Great Barrington displayed a most remarkable interest in 
the movement. Lots of men were seen every day on every 
corner, discussing the previous evening's meeting, and men of 
well known drinking habits became so zealous in the cause 
that they spent their whole time going into the highways and 
byways to gather up their old companions to bring them into 
the temperance atmosphere. The most effective discourse 
during the Great Barrington excitement was delivered by the 
Rev. O. P. Gifford, of Pittsfield. During the course of his 
remarks he narrated his experience with temptation when a 
clerk in Lampson, Goodnow & Co.'s New York store, and how 
two young ladies tried to get him to drink wine. He warned 
young ladies against placing the intoxicating cup in the way 
of young men. Gen. Love said that they proposed to make 
Great Barrington the banner town in the temperance cause in 
Berkshire county, and the way the thing looked a larger list 
would be obtained there with 5,000 population, than in Pitts- 



374 THE TKUE PATH; 

field with 14,000. One liquor-seller had said that it was no use 
for the trade to say it made no difference in their business, as 
they all felt it, and that the temperance work was making sad 
havoc in the traffic. A liquor-seller left a bottle of whisky 
and some glasses upon his bar the other evening, and went out, 
leaving the door open, saying "he would see if the place could 
do any business alone." An impromptu council of war was 
held on the street, Tuesday morning, by several dealers ; but 
they were at a loss for a plan to circumvent the movement, 
though no end of venom was exhibited. 

The temperance excitement struck Easthampton with a 
force which thoroughly surprised friends and foes alike. For 
years past there had been various spasmodic attempts at tem- 
perance work, all of which, being unorganized and sometimes 
not conducted with the best judgment, had no lasting effect. 
While the town had always had the reputation among out- 
siders as a model moral New England village, many of the 
inhabitants had a sad realization of the fact that the general 
public morality, 'especially among some of the youth, was at a 
decidedly low point. Intemperance had been prevalent, cer- 
tainly, in the lower classes, and had extended to the young 
men of better position, while gambling was not entirely un- 
known. There were, at the time of the commencement of the 
Murphy agitation, nine licensed places in town, and various 
unlicensed places. None of these, however, with the excep- 
tion of one small beer saloon, and the drug store, which sold 
almost no liquor except for medicinal purposes, were situated 
in the center, the remainder being in the factory villages. 
Some of the places, it is well known, violated the law con- 
stantly, by selling over hours and on Sundays, but no official 
complaint had ever been made against them, and they were 
permitted to do about as they liked. In consequence, the sight 
of drunken men on the streets had become common, and the 
dwellers on a respectable street leading fronvthe center to the 
"New city" complained bitterly of the discomfort caused 
them by these fellows. The Murphy movement differed from 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 375 

all preceding efforts in the cause here in being thoroughly well 
backed and organized. The leading merchants and manu- 
facturers had become deeply interested, and did all they 
could, by personal work and influence, to aid the* work. The 
ladies also took hold of it with good heart, and in fact, the 
Women's Temperance Union first proposed it. The movement 
started off with immense enthusiasm, and, although they could 
hardly expect to keep the meeting up to the pitch of the first 
one, when nearly a tenth of the town's total population signed 
the pledge, yet they confidently expected to secure over 1,000 
signatures during the week. Among the signers so far were 
some of the hardest drinkers in the town, and several young 
business men, who had been accustomed to take a social glass 
occasionally. 

The series of meetings in Easthampton justified the hopes 
of its sponsors, for more than a thousand were induced to take 
the first step in a new life. • 

The Northampton work had in it many encouraging and 
unique features. Notwithstanding the attraction of George 
Rignold, the actor, at the Opera House, several nights, the 
meetings were thronged. 

At one of these meetings Mr. Foot, who wore the epaulets 
of one of Murphy's best captains, made a bright little speech, 
of which the following is an extract : 

" I stand here one of Brother Murphy's converts. I rejoice 
that I am now a free, untrammeled man ; I feel, I know, that 
I am such. When Mr. Murphy asked me to come to North- 
ampton I had no idea I should face such an audience. I used 
to be here a good deal when I was a boy at school at East- 
hampton. I ran away from President Clark in those days over 
here to get my grog. I suppose I drank as much grog in 
Northampton then as in any other town. If there are young 
men here who are in the habitrof taking something, I urge you 
to give it up. Your fathers and mothers and sisters will re- 
joice, and those whom, perhaps, you think more of than all 
others — your sweethearts — will think more of you. A week 



376 THE TEUE PATH; 

ago I would not believe I should be addressing an audience on 
temperance to-day. I went to hear Mr.. Murphy, and I said, 
'He can't get me.' I told him I was a hard nut to crack, but 
he has cracked me thoroughly, and don't you forget it. If I 
can do you any good here in Northampton, I am willing to 
come up every day. And I wish to remind the ladies that they 
have a great part to play in this work. I could hardly work 
my way up Main street in Springfield this morning, so many 
people stopped me to congratulate and encourage me, some of 
them gentlemen who had not spoken to me for years. A glo- 
rious work has been done in Springfield ; many have been 
brought into it, and there are others who are bound to come to 
it. I shall hold out, by the grace of God, and I want all the 
boys to back me up. At first I missed my little punch, but 
I find a glass of water will answer. A man in Springfield 
who does a large business met me a little while ago and said : 
' You ask the boys to back you. I heard you say you had been 
out of business for two years. I will back you by giving you 
$100 per month and your travelling expenses to work for me 
from the first of February. And I won't drink a drop of liquor 
myself till you do.' And I tell you, my drinking friends, if 
you will sign the pledge you can expect a similar backing from 
the business friends of this community." 

The harvest of the week gathered in six hundred names, in- 
cluding many of the worst drunkards in the place. 

At Westfield the series of meetings were addressed by the 
most prominent citizens of the place as well as by a number 
of the most well-known Murphy men. An interesting incident 
was the conversion of Jack Freed, a great pet of the cigar 
manufacturing community, which makes such an important 
element in Westfield. Freed kept a popular saloon, and he 
offered to assist in fitting it up as a temperance* reading and 
smoking-room for young men. 

During the ten meetings that were held, the list of names 
swelled to twelve hundred. The liquor-sellers felt the result 
of the movement to such an extent that one saloon-keeper 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 377 

frankly acknowledged that " he did not average over five cents 
an hour." 

The little town of Hatfield illustrated the importance of the 
movement in rather a significant way. Daring the previous 
fifteen months the temperance work had been quite thoroughly 
organized through the agency of a Reform Club, a Father 
Mathew Society, and a Woman's Temperance Union. 

It was supposed that all who could be induced to sign the 
pledge had given in their signatures. Yet a week's meetings 
under the leadership of N". D. Parsons, of Hartford, resulted 
in gathering in nearly two hundred men, including not a few 
who had been given over as beyond the relief of possible cure. 

At Thompson ville, Conn., the first meeting, under the direc- 
tion of Eccles Robinson, gathered in 446 pledge-takers. Dur- 
ing a week of work, nearly a thousand people were added to 
the blessed list of total abstinence men. 

These casual statistics will indicate the depth and force of 
the brief Massachusetts campaign ; an influence which has 
been working persistently since Mr. Murphy's departure, and 
adding fresh trophies to his remarkable abilites, both as an 
agitator and organizer. It is safe* to estimate,- that from 
twelve to fifteen thousand pledges were taken as the imme- 
diate result of the Murphy campaign in that section. A work 
fully as remarkable as any which had preceded it, when we 
consider the brief period during which the temperance re- 
former himself was present in the field. 



378 THE TRUE PATH J 



CHAPTER XXI. 

THE TEMPERANCE CAUSE IN WASHINGTON, D. C. — MURPHY AND 
HIS DETRACTORS. — DEPARTURE AND RETURN OP THE EVAN- 
GELIST. — INTERESTING CHARACTERISTICS OP THE WASHING- 
TON WORK. 

Mr. Murphy began his work in Washington the latter part 
of January. His first meeting attracted a very large crowd ; 
and the impression he made was a very favorable one. 

He opened at Lincoln Hall. On the night of February 1, 
there was an immense concourse of people to hear him, and 
the experience of the others aiding him. 

Professor Burlen's choir was out in full force, and rendered 
Gospel songs in excellent style. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, known 
as the " sweet siugers," also contributed their services. . 

Mr. Murphy's talk was short, but very impressive. He 
introduced Mr. Cunningham of West Virginia, who gave a 
thrilling experience, and was immediately followed by Miss 
Frances E. Willard, of Chicago, one of the most successful 
workers and most eloquent speakers in the country. 

The Kentucky giant, Col. James Gray, was then called for, 
and responded in an able and most dramatic manner. He was 
loudly applauded, and spoke again, and was followed by the 
temperance apostle, who made a most earnest appeal to all, to 
come and sign the pledge. A great many answered the call. 

On February 4, Lincoln Hall was a perfect jam. Many 
who were unable to enter went to the Methodist Episcopal 
Church on Ninth street, which was soon crowded in every 
part ; and those who could not gain admission here, went over 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 381 

to Temperance Temple, where a third meeting was organ- 
ized. 

Mr. Murphy's address at Lincoln Hall was exceedingly in- 
teresting and effective. He was followed by his son Thomas 
E. Murphy, who, in a very graphic manner, pictured his early 
life. Over two hundred people took the pledge. 
♦ The noon-day meeting was largely attended. Mrs. Lizzie 
Pope sang several solos in a very acceptable manner, and was 
much applauded. Mr. Murphy read and commented on a 
selection of Scripture, speaking particularly on love, faith and 
charitv. 

In the afternoon he and his son called upon the President 
and Mrs. Hayes. They were presented by O. F. Presbrey, 
Esq., and were cordially welcomed by the host and hostess of 
the White House. Mr. Hayes said Mr. Murphy had struck 
the keynote in the reform line, because he preached the saving 
grace of God. He thought no reform amounted to anything 
unless it increased, the roll of church-membership. He also 
thought Mr. Murphy was right because he denounced no one, 
not even the rum-seller, and concluded by saying that if men 
could only be brought to stop drinking the rum-sellers would 
have to shut up their shops. 

On the evening of February 5, Lincoln Hall was literally 
crammed to overflowing. The appearance of Mr. Murphy and 
his son was a signal for uproarious applause. They were 
followed by Charley Nye, the convert, who was received with 
more than vociferous cheering. On the right of the stage a 
large basket of elegant flowers stood with the words, 
" welcome, Charley " woven along the top. 

Mr. Murphy read a part of the fifty-eighth chapter of 
Isaiah. 

Mr. Nye received his handsome flowers and replied amidst 
deafening applause. 

Mr. Murphy remarked that he trusted all would now unite 
in one grand onslaught on the common enemy, until every 
rum-shop in the city closed its doors, and thus do away with 



882 THE TRUE PATH; 

the necessity of legislation on the subject. He referred to 
Messrs. Nye and Dunning, whom he had heard of before he 
reached the city, the latter of whom he had worked with in 
New England. He rejoiced when he heard of the life and 
conversion of Nye, with .whose work he was conversant, and 
he bade him God-speed. He then made an earnest and telling 
appeal to all present to come with the help of the Lord and 
fight against the mighty enemy. He spoke of the Rev. Dr. 
Newman, whom he met at Chatauqua Lake, when the 
doctor reminded him so much of Daniel Webster that he 
called him by no other name. He then introduced Dr. New- 
man, who was in one of his happiest moods, and kept the 
great audience convulsed with laughter for ten minutes, and 
closed by hoping that Murphy would speak from the eastern 
portico of the Capitol on Sabbath next, where he believed at 
least twenty thousand people would gather to hear him. 

Charley Nye then took the stand, and gave briefly his 
experience as a drinking man, and then he drew a few vivid 
parallels between his former and his present life, and now his 
w T ife and even his mother-in-law are happy. The Hon. Mr. 
Brascombe, of Missouri, gave a stirring five-minutes talk, and 
said as he closed that the temperance advocates must remember 
that they had the law as the last resort, and if love failed, the 
law would succeed. 

Mr. Murphy then made one of his earnest exhortations, and, 
related two or three experiences of poor fallen men, who had 
reformed, and had been restored to homes that were desolate, 
but now are homes of refinement and comfort. He then urged 
everybody to come and sign the pledge, because it would pay 
them in the end. Mr. Murphy, with his characteristic earnest- 
ness, went down from the stage and mingled with the people, 
and by personal conversation and pleading, induced scores to 
add their names to the great list of total abstainers, the choir 
keeping everybody in excellent spirits by singing sweet songs, 
ceasing a few moments to allow Colonel Gray to make some 
remarks. As many had been compelled to go away because 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 383 



of the crowd, an overflow meeting was announced for the 
future at Temperance Temple, to be addressed by Messrs. 
Edward Murphy, Nye, Dunning and others. 

Hundreds were turned away from Lincoln Hall the follow- 
ing night before seven o'clock. 

Mr. Murphy arrived at the usual hour, and the exercises 
were at once opened by a Scripture lesson from Isaiah lv., fol- 
lowed by prayer, offered by the Rev. Mr. Bonham. Mr. 
Murphy soon took the stand, and in his well-known, earnest 
manner spoke of the many evils that cursed society, independ- 
ent of intemperance ; and after handling without gloves those 
that are careless and indifferent, he made a grand and eloquent 
apj)eal to all to rise in the majesty of full manhood and woman- 
hood and aid in the cause of universal liberty. 

After singing from "Crystal Songs," Mr. Bonham, the 
Episcopal evangelist, was introduced, and made an excellent 
address, replete with grand truths. The audience then united 
in singing, " O, to grace how great a debtor." Young Mr. 
Murphy spoke at his father's request, and said that many in 
the assembly had probably never touched or tasted the unclean 
thing, yet they did not wear the blue ribbon. He believed 
that it was the duty of every man to show his colors, that his 
position might not be mistaken. 

The following report, taken from the Washington Republican, 
under datd of February 8, will give the reader a good idea 
of Francis Murphy's work in this city : 

" Mr. Murphy packs Lincoln Flail at every meeting as no man 
ever did before. He is awakening dormant Washington, and 
the effects of his reform are being felt all through its thor- 
oughfares and by-streets. Hundreds of men are daily enrolling 
themselves in the great army of temperance reform, which re- 
ceives its greatest impulse from Mr. Murphy's earnest manner, 
his boundless charity, and his pathetic life-story. ' With 
malice toward none, and charity for all,' is his motto. He 
never assails any one — not even the rum-seller — but tries to 
show drinking men the sinfulness and error of their ways. His 



384 THE TEUE PATH; 

own life-story has and will yet convert thousands. Mr. 
Murphy is a king, made so by his own will, and hundreds of 
thousands throughout the land bless his name and rejoice in 
their fealty to so noble a liege lord. It is with regret that Mr. 
Murphy's friends here will hear that his stay is to be shortened, 
and that he will deliver his farewell address on Sunday after- 
noon. He is to go to Hartford, Conn., and follow up the 
good work done there by Messrs. Moody and Sankey. 

" Last evening the hall was packed as close as a sardine-box. 
Standing-room was not to be had inside the doors. The meet- 
ing was of unusual interest, the programme consisting of 
speeches and music. The overflow meeting was held at the 
Opera House, and this place also was packed to its limits. The 
exercises were opened by prayer offered by Mr. Pendle. Ad- 
dresses were made by young Mr. Murphy, Mr. Dunning, Colo- 
nel Gray, Mr. Cunningham, and others. Mr. Murphy, Jr., is 
a chip of the old block, and has won hosts of friends here. 
His enthusiasm is boundless, and last night, after the meeting 
had closed, the audience were unwilling to leave their seats, 
and the loud cries for ' Murphy ! Murphy !' continued until he 
appeared and made another stirring address. Miss Daniels and 
Mrs. Pope each sang solos daring the evening, and altogether 
it was a happy occasion. About five hundred signed the pledge 
at both of the meetings." 

Under date of February 9, a Washington journal speaks 
graphically, as follows, of a Murphy meeting : 

" The K street market house presented a novel appearance 
last evening. Its brilliant illumination and crowded interior 
formed a scene which impressed itself with indelible firmness 
upon the minds of hundreds who were present at that great 
ovation to Mr. Francis Murphy. For an hour before the time 
of meeting the thoroughfares leading toward it were thronged 
with men, women and children. Through the doors were 
heard the inspiring strains of music from the band inside, and 
everything tended to add a charm to the unique nature of the 
event. Once inside the building, a strange sight presented 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 385 

itself. The aisles were packed with people ; instead of legs of 
mutton upon the butchers' blocks, human legs stood closely 
packed. On the tables, and back of them, men and women 
stood as close together as the Siamese twins. Upon the racks 
of the stalls ' ye festive small boy' climbed, and looked down 
from his exalted position upon the less lucky ones with a sar- 
donic grin, which made one almost wish he were a boy again. 

" Everything gave way to the vast crowd. The great store- 
house of things eatable donned its holiday attire. Beef steaks, 
mutton chops, veal cutlets, sausages, vegetables, butter, eggs, 
poultry, ginger bread, candies, and ail such necessities had to 
yield their, places for the nonce. In the centre of the hall, 
about under the large boot-clock, the stand was erected. In 
the west gallery the band was stationed, and it did good service 
at intervals throughout the evening by playing airs which 
thrilled and gave impulse to the almost boundless enthusiasm 
of the audience. 

" The exercises of the evening were commenced by singing, 
after which Mr. Dunning was introduced. No sooner, how- 
ever, had he commenced, than a shout went up that ' Murphy 
is coming.' The band here struck up < Hail to the Chief,' 
and, amidst the greatest excitement, Mr. Murphy and son, 
Colonel Gray, and Mr. Cramer were lifted upon the platform. 
Without any delay, Mr. Murphy, laying aside his coat and 
hat, stepped forward and said : 

".'How can I make myself heard by this great audience ? I 
fear it will be impossible. This is a grand spectacle. A 
mighty demonstration of hearts which beat for a cause 
destined to win. One that will go on, grandly on, redeeming 
men and making them whiter than snow through the saving 
grace of the Lord Jesus Christ. When I accejjted the invita- 
tion to come here I expected no such demonstration as this, 
and if I live to be as old as Methuselah this grand picture will 
stand vividly before my mind. Let us go forth and fight in 
this grand cause until every saloon, every distillery,* and every 
rum-shop shall stop its destructive work, and give way to the 



386 THE TKUE PATH ; 

pure, sparkling, majestic spring, the gift of God himself. 
God bless Father Mathew, the Women's Temperance Union, 
the Rechabites, Sons of Temperance, the Dashaways, Good 
Templars, and all of them. Let us stand hand to hand, 
shoulder to shoulder, until the dark throne of intemperance 
shall be thrown over. Our oath is sealed by God's holy bless- 
ing. Let us never falter until the work is completed. God 
bless you all.' 

" The i Kentucky giant,' Mr. James M. Gray, was then in- 
troduced, and spoke for some time in his own inimitable and 
stirring manner. He said he thought the murmur of this vast 
audience was like to the sound of many waters. He said he 
wanted to say a word of this hero, this champion who came 
here in the hallowed remembrance of seven years' warfare 
against intemperance ; who bore upon his escutcheon not a 
single scar or blemish, and who had won his battles among the 
granite hills and on the distant prairie, who had carried joy to 
thousands of hearts not only in the houses of the poor, but in 
the lordly mansions of aristocracy* The speaker said that 
throughout the length and breadth of the land, the cause, with 
the impetus given it by Francis Murphy, was gaining ground, 
and he wanted to see it continue until every hopeless drunk- 
ard, every genteel drinker, and every tippler wore the blue 
ribbon. 

" He said that this man Francis Murphy, unaided and un- 
heralded by the trumpet of fame, without aristocratic or 
moneyed friends, had started out alone, with no preparation 
except his faith, and that his success had been so boundless 
that to-night this vast audience would unite in placing upon 
his manly brow the garlands and chaplets of never-dying 
afiection. 

" After Mr. Gray concluded, Mr. Charley Nye made a few 
remarks, wishing Murphy ( God-speed' in his good work. 

" Mr. Nye was followed by his colleague, Mr. Dunning, who 
continued his speech, which was broken off at the commence- 
ment of the meeting by the appearance of Mr. Murphy. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCES 387 

" After some refreshing music by the band, Mr. Cunningham, 
of West Virginia, spoke for a few moments, and was followed 
by Budd. Eggleston -and Dr. Bonham. 

"After the latter finished, Mr. Murphy and son, preceded by 
Colonel Morgan, Chief of Police, made their way slowly 
through'the crowd, Mr. Murphy shaking all the hands within 
reach, and exchanging smiles with his hundreds of unknown 
friends. At this part of the programme order gave way to 
enthusiasm, and round after round of cheers chased each other 
through the arches of the building. This part of the pro- 
gramme was greatly enjoyed by the numerous small boys, who, 
from their lofty perches, yelled and whistled in the true Young 
America style. While Mr. Murphy was making the detour of 
the hall addresses were made from the platform by Dr. Noble, 
Dr. Cramer and others. 

" After several songs the benediction w 7 as pronounced by 
Rev. Dr. Newman, and the largest mass meeting that Washing- 
ton had seen for many a day was over. At least 10,000 persons 
were in attendance during the evening, and, considering the 
great number, the order maintained w r as excellent." 

The following article appeared in the Washington Repub- 
lican of February 11, and will be found liighly interesting : 

"The announcement last week that the farewell Murphy 
meeting w T ould be held yesterday afternoon caused the spa- 
cious Lincoln Hall to be packed to its limits. Notwithstanding 
an admittance was asked, every available foot of room in the 
hall was occupied, and the stage was. also packed with the 
clergy and choir. The preliminary exercises of song at three 
o'clock yielded place to the reading of a portion of the Sermon 
on the Mount by Mr. Murphy, with a running comment on the 
same. Bev. Mr. Bonham then offered an earnest and fervent 
prayer for the Divine blessing on the cause and the meeting. 
As he closed, Mr. Thomas Penclel stepped up to Mr. Murphy, 
and handing him a beautiful basket of flowers, said that flow- 
ers were typical of purity of heart, that the hand of God had 
made them beautiful, and that the purity of Mr. Murphy's 



388 THE TRUE PATH; 

heart extended round about him as the fragrance of the flowers 
which he held in his hand. He closed by expressing a wish 
to meet Mr. Murphy in the New Jerusalem, whose streets were 
of jasper and pure gold. 

" Mr. Murphy replied that he returned his heart's best thanks 
and kindest regard, and hoped that when life's work was com- 
plete they might dwell eternally in the fields which were 
always green, and whose flowers never fade. 

" No sooner had he finished than Mr. Cunningham, of West 
Virginia, stepped up and handed Mr. Murphy another beauti- 
ful basket, which he presented in the name of the Crystal 
Fount Division, Sons of Temperance, with the hope that when 
life's work was o'er he (Murphy) might cull fadeless flowers 
on the banks of the eternal river. 

" Mr, Murphy answered in a happy manner that a man could 
make a good reply when presented with one basket, but when 
it came to a second one his ammunition was about used up. 
He, however, thanked the Division again and again, and hoped 
they would continue their good work until every dram-shop 
was closed. 

"After these pleasantries Mr. Burlew, the leader of the 
choir, sang c By-and-By We Shall Meet Him,' the audience 
uniting in the chorus. Mr. Murphy, at the conclusion of . the 
song, said he was heartily glad to see so many present, as he 
proposed to speak on a theme near and dear to every one of 
them. He thought all were interested in saving men and 
women. It was Dr. Johnson who said it was easier to be a 
total abstainer than a moderate drinker. In the temperance 
cause there is a chance for every one to work. The surest 
earnest of a reform is to prepare the people for it. Legislators 
ask at once, when urged to make laws in this direction, if the 
people are ready for them. It is a poor officer who goes so 
far ahead of his men that he can't be heard by them. People 
now have a great responsibility resting on them. It does not 
belong to one political party. Unlike former evils, it is not 
sectional. It extends from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Re- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERAKCE. 389 

publicans and Democrats can stand shoulder to shoulder in 
this cause of temperance without being ostracised. The mo- 
ment you draw lines you will have trouble. A Republican's 
son is just as dear to him as a young Democrat is to his father. 
There is another thing : God's ministers must come to the 
front. In every city Mr. Murphy said he had been faithfully 
seconded by the clergy, or he would have had no success. He 
thought it was possible to save any man by loving kindness 
and tender mercy. The fault was that people didn't try that 
remedy. The moment a man got to drinking too much he 
was read out of society and the church, while others who drank 
just as much, but could stand it, remained. Nothing but kind- 
ness will save the inebriate. There's a noble life for every 
man. It is impossible to break up the divinity in a human 
being. Christ-like sympathy will always save. The speaker 
said it was a noticeable fact that when a man's riches took 
wings and flew away, his friends generally left about the same 
time. He then rehearsed th6 story of his life in prison, when 
he prayed God that he might have a chance to show the world 
that he was a man, and that since God had saved him he never 
doubted His willingness to save any man. He thought there 
were too few Good Samaritans and too many who went by on 
the other side. He thought he could count on his fingers all 
the men in the audience before him who would be willing to 
put their arms around a poor drunken man in the street and 
help him get home. 

" He denounced the present laws against drunkenness, and 
said they didn't do the moral status of society any good. The 
speaker here related the case of a man in Sterling, 111., who was 
doing an extensive liquor business, but who finally signed the 
pledge. He concluded by hoping that all would unite their 
efforts against the accursed evil, rum, and that there would be 
no North, no South, East, or West, but a united country, all 
fighting in the grand cause of temperance. He wanted all to 
take courage, and assured them there was a way out of the 



390 THE TKTJE PATH; 

darkness, if they would stand hand to hand and shoulder to 
shoulder, preferring death to bondage. 

" As Mr. Murphy concluded and took his seat a storm of ap- 
plause greeted him, and continued until he arose again, re- 
marking as he did so that their welcome made his Irish heart 
glad, and that he wanted his son to make a few remarks. 
Mr. Thomas Murphy then said that he was thankful for an 
opportunity to speak to such an audience in the cause of free- 
dom. He said he could not add anything to what his father 
had said, but that he was glad to say that he had stood by him 
in his hours of misfortune, and now stood at his side in the 
hour of prosperity. This was a proof that it paid to sign the 
pledge, and to be in the gladsome obedience to the dictations 
of one's conscience. He thought help was in the reach of 
every man if they would only ask for it. A great many did 
not see the necessity of signing the pledge, and this class he 
wanted to warn. He concluded by urging the audience to do 
their duty, as the bell of time was ringing away their years. 

"As he concluded his address he was presented with a 
beautiful bouquet, for which he bowed acknowledgment. 

" Mr. Edward Townsend then read a poem, written for the 
occasion by 'Daisy Dell' (Mrs. Marie Barton Green), and 
dedicated to Mr. Murphy : 

" l Underneath the cross the faithful find a crown, 
And a smile of kindness dissipates a frown ; 
So love's gentle mission in this world of ours 
Makes the heart grow lighter — strews our way with flowers. 

" ' Underneath the clouds the silver linings shine; 
So cold water sparkles 'neath the deadly wine. 
It is always darkest near the dawn of day ; 
Thus the blessing's nearest when we watch and pray. 

" l Underneath the leaves of winter's withered sod 
Lie the treasured blessings of a loving God ; 
Thus, beneath the burdens we are called to bear 
Pearls of grace are hidden in the power of prayer. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. ' .891 

" c Underneath the frown of winter's rayless night 
Lie the snowy mountains, clothed in spotless white; 
Thus the Land of Promise, through a cloud of tears, 
Waits the ever-faithful, through the mist of years. 

" 4 Underneath the wrong the banner floats for right, 
And our brave commander takes the field to-night. 
'Neath the starry emblem of our country's fame 
We will sing the praises of this patriot's name. 

" ' Underneath the cross he marshals help divine 
In his hero worship at cold water's shrine ; 
While the golden harvest just before him lies, 
And the bow of promise shines from yonder skies. 

" ' Underneath the gloom of many shadowed homes, 
Lo ! a light is gleaming — lo ! a conqueror comes ; 
Man of many sorrows — saved by blessed grace — 
Teaching Gospel temperance to the human race. 

" l Underneath the cross our Christian hero comes, 

See the thronging thousands hast'ning from their homes 
To receive his blessing as they pass along, 
Bearing temperance badges — singing sacred song. 

" * Underneath the dome of heaven's cloudless sky 
We have met together — met to say " good-bye." 
In this Sabbath stillness we have come to pray — 
" May our Father gaide thee on thy toilsome way." 

" ' Underneath the cross our Christian hero stands, 
While his work is spreading over many lands ; 
Take our prayerful blessing for thyself and son, 
May thy crown be waiting when thy work is done.' 

" Rev. Dr. Rankin was the next to speak, and he said that 
when Murphy came here, two weeks ago, Washingtonians 
knew him by the ear, but now by the eye. He thought that 
they couldn't afford to let him go so soon. He thought not 
enough preparation had been made to care for the men whom 
Murphy rescued, and if they were not cared for, the tide often 
came up and swept them out to sea again. 



392 THE TRUE PATH; 

" The doctor expressed himself pleased with the manner in 
which Mr. Murphy tried to bring men under the cross. It was 
the true way to save them. He thought the man who could 
save the rum-seller, and the young man who was tempted, was 
wanted here in Washington, and he didn't propose to let him 
go. He then put the question to the audience : ' If Mr. 
Murphy stays here two weeks more, will you sustain him?', 
and it was answered by long and hearty applause, loud enough 
to awaken the echoes. The speaker then said that there was 
a material burden resting on the committee, and if Mr. Murphy 
staid they must be supported. 

"Mr. Murphy said that the movement * ought to extend 
through the churches. In Pittsburgh they had thirty churches 
packed every evening ; that he was tired and worn out, but 
that he wouldn't say good-bye yet ; and that he should always 
remember the people in Washington, and hoped that they 
would not forget him. 

"Mr. O. F. Presbrey, stepping up, took Mr. Murphy by the 
hand, and, turning to the audience, said that the committee 
didn't propose to let him go ; that they had done the best they 
could, and wanted him to go on in his great work of saving 
men, as nearly 10,000 had signed the pledge since he came 
here." • 

At a meeting of representatives of the various temperance 
and church organizations of the district, held on the evening of 
February 13, it was decided that the Murphy meetings should 
be continued for at least two weeks longer. 

A committee of twenty-five was appointed upon finance to 
raise funds to continue the meetings, as follows : Hon. A. M. 
Gangewer, Hon. John D. Defrees, A. S. Richmond, Dr. E. S. 
Corbin, F. M. Bradley, A. P. Lacey, J. W. Reynolds, W. R. 
Davis, R. S. Graham, Thomas Hamilton, J. F. Dobbyn, A. N. 
Ham, W. H. Norton, Major H. A. Hull, James H. Vermilya, 
A. E. Ashburn, George P. Noble, W. B. Hawes, Colonel J. 
M. Grey, Dr. Thomas Calvin, Samuel Kramer, J. C. Wall, 
Charles M. Nye, and John B. Dunning. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 393 

At a meeting of the finance committee the following officers 
were elected : Hon. A. M. Gangewer, president ; Hon. A. S. 
Richmond, vice-president ; F. Marion Bradley, treasurer ; A. 
1ST. Ham, secretary, with the following as an executive com- 
mittee : James H. Vermilya, E. S. Corbin, J. C. Wall, John 
F. Dobbyn, and William H. Norton. 

The following article taken from the Washington Star will 
fully explain and settle all controversy on Francis Murphy's 
work and pay while in Washington : 

" There is considerable gossip about town about the difficulty 
between certain temperance and church people on one side, 
and Mr. Murphy, the temperance lecturer, on the other, over 
the division of money collected at the late Murphy temperance 
meetings. It appears to have originated from a want of plan 
at the outstart. Previous to Murphy's coming to this city, 
both Dr. Newman and the managers of the Y. M. C. A. were 
negotiating with hirn to visit here, and his letter of acceptance 
to come was addressed to Dr. Newman. The question of pay 
had been discussed among the members of Dr. Newman's 
church and among the managers of the Y. M. C. A., but no 
definite understanding was arrived at. In Mr. Murphy's letter 
to Dr. Newman he signified his willingness that in case his 
terms could not be complied with, that he would come, trust- 
ing to their best efforts for his renumeration. During his visit 
several large collections of funds were made, but it is alleged 
they were not used as he expected, and, previous to his de- 
parture, he did not hesitate to express himself freely and em- 
phatically about it, asserting that he had not been paid his 
fair proportion by the managers. At a meeting Monday night 
of the Y. M. C. A, committee, having charge of the meetings, 
a report was made showing that the receipts during the two 
weeks Murphy lectured here were $716.01, and disbursements 
$701.15. Of this $225 was paid for rent of hall, $98.38 for 
board of Murphy and his son and daughter at the Ebbitt 
House, board for Mr. and Mrs. Wilson, who came with him, 
$50, and Mr. Murphy was paid back $12 which he contributed 



394 THE TEUE PATH ; 

to the poor, and tie also received $103.43, leaving about $230 
unaccounted for. It is said that on his return to-day 'he will 
deal altogether with Dr. Newman in relation to payments for 
his services, and that arrangements have been made to his en- 
tire satisfaction." 

Mr. Murphy reappeared in Washington in the Metropolitan 
Church, on the evening of February 15, before, an immense 
audience. Seated upon the rostrum were Judge Snell, Captain 
Cyrus Sturdivant, Dr. Clarke, Dr. Rankin, F. M. Bradley, Dr. 
Taylor and Edward Murphy. 

When Mr. Murphy entered the audience applauded loudly. 

Mr. Murphy said that he was very glad to have the honor 
to be here again to work together with them in the cause of 
total abstinence. He had had a very pleasant time in Phila- 
delphia. He had also stopped in Wilmington, where they had 
had a splendid meeting. 

After speaking further of his trip, he gave a beautiful 
account of the conversion of a lawyer who had been a hard 
drinker. Mr. Murphy said that we cannot fail if we put our 
trust in God. At the conclusions of his remarks he was pre- 
sented with a beautiful basket of flowers and a volume of 
music. 

Rev. Mr. Taylor read an original poem, welcoming Mr. 
Murphy. Dr. Clarke, of Pittsburgh, delivered a very pleasing 
address. Mr. Gray, a great temperance worker of Kentucky, 
delivered a very eloquent address. Captain Cyrus Sturdivant, 
of Portland, Me., who is the gentleman who converted Murphy 
in the jail at Portland, was introduced. 

Speaking of Mrs. Hayes, he said that he thought God would 
bless that lady of ladies who cast from her dinner table that 
universal curse. The captain was presented with a very 
beautiful bouquet of flowers. The congregation sang, " Hold 
the Fort," and seventy-five new signers were added to the list. 

Metropolitan Church was filled to its utmost the next even- 
ing. Upon the platform was seated Rev. Drs. Newman, 
Gray and Rankin ; Captain Sturdivant, A. S. Richmond, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 395 

Colonel Davidson, Mr. Cunningham, Judge Snell, and many 
others. Prayer was offered by Rev. Dr. Gray, after which 
Dr. Newman read a very encouraging article, showing the 
progress of total abstinence in England. Mr. Murphy, being 
introduced, said that the future was full of interest in 
churches. In legislatures in this great capital the minds of 
men are turned to the consideration of this great cause as 
never before. Yea, throughout our land, thousands of 
churches are open to the public, and Christian ministers are 
united to make common cause against the use of intoxicating 
liquors, seeking to save men through the power of the Gospel. 
He made a most earnest appeal to all present to sign the pledge 
and don the blue ribbon. Rev. Dr. Gray next addressed the 
meeting. In the course of his remarks he made mention of 
the fact that the man into whose hands his father's property 
fell refused his mother credit for a portion of the cost of her 
mourning dress, and that from this unkind act, perhaps, his 
mother kindled in his heart a hatred for rum, and that at the 
early age of nine years he signed the pledge, and thanked God 
he had kept it. 

On February 19, the Murphy meeting was conducted in the 
Congregational church, and that spacious structure could not 
hold all who desired to attend. At least eight hundred went 
away who were unable to gain admittance. 

Dr. Rankin presided, and opened the exercises with prayer. 

Charley Nye then spoke, saying that twenty-two months 
ago last night he was converted in that very church, and that 
since then it had always been a cherished spot to him. 

The next speaker was Major Morgan, Chief of Police. He 
thought that the fruits of the Murphy movement were mani- 
fest in his department, as only three arrests for drunkenness 
were made Sunday night, and thirteen men who were notified 
to pay for their licenses had withdrawn their papers and 
changed their business. He hoped the good work would go 
on and the harvest would be a blessed one. Mr. Warren 
Choate, Secretary of the Y. M. C. A. ; then spoke of the battles 



396 ' THE TKITE PATH.; 

that were being fought and the victories that had been won. 
He hoped ail would join hand in hand and heart to heart in 
this work, and the triumph would he sure. 

Murphy's presence in Washington had the effect not merely of 
stimulating fresh enthusiasm, but of awakening into vital force 
some of the old dormant organizations which had languished 
long under the peculiarly unfavorable surroundings of society at 
the national capital. As the center of political life, the focus of 
not merely the most truthful and noble elements, but the most 
noxious and dangerous features of social economy, Washington 
has a glittering pre-eminence. Perhaps nowhere in the world, 
except in Paris, is evil masked with such a glittering and de- 
lusive show, and temptation sugar-coated with those sweet 
deceits that stupefy the consciences and cheat the hearts of 
men. In such an atmosphere as this, reformatory clubs and 
institutions are apt to degenerate into " sounding brass and a 
tinkling cymbal." The Murphy meetings awakened several of 
these into a robust and active life out of their Rip Van Winkle 
slumber. Many of the most interesting features of the Wash- 
ington revival got their significance in this connection. One 
of the representative clubs of this character in Washington is 
that known as the Washington Reform Clubhand its gath- 
erings were full of enthusiasm and effective work. At one of 
these meetings Col. J. H. Davidson, of St. Paul, Minn., was 
introduced. 

He said the subject was one in which his whole heart was in- 
terested. He alluded to the fact that he was a member of the 
Reform Club of St. Paul, which numbered some six or seven 
hundred men. Its object was similar to the Washington Re- 
form Club — to aid those who desired to aid themselves. . In 
his city, of the many who had been reclaimed from intem- 
perance, he could sight them in positions now of trust and 
honor ; their families were now happy. To those who had 
recently signed the pledge, he said : " Stand firm !" They 
must not expect to be exalted at once into high places. Be 
firm, and true friends would come to them. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 397 

He compared the life of the drunkard with that of the tem- 
perate man, and asked the question : " Where is the man 
who would be slow to decide upon which side he would prefer 
to be ?" He paid a high tribute to the laboring classes, and 
appealed to them to sign the pledge, and make the reform 
club a terror to those who dealt in strong drink. The beauti- 
ful hymn, " Pull for the Shore," was then sung, after which 
Judge Snell was introduced. He said he much preferred 
meeting this large audience here than at his usual receptions ; 
that the hope of the country depended upon the sober young 
men. He had not himself been addicted to the use of strong 
drink. 

He was not here to-night as a temperance lecturer, but he 
proposed to do now, as he always had, his whole duty as a 
temperance man. In his State no man could sell liquor with 
a license, as they did not grant them, and if he attempted to 
sell without he was fined $100, or sent to jail. He was here 
to-night as a representative of that profession whose duty it is 
to see the law enforced. He should see, so long as he was 
judge of the police court, that those who violated the license 
law, and came before him, received a warm reception. During 
the eight years he had been judge of the police court he had 
tried 60,000 cases, a large majority of which came directly or 
indirectly from the use of liquor. No man had the right to 
do that which would injure himself, his family, or his neigh- 
bor, and this he thought the drinking man did. He had en- 
deavored to try all prisoners who came before him " with 
malice toward none and charity for all." 

He had never punished any man with a feeling of pleasure. 
He alluded to the poor women who had been to him for war- 
rants for husbands who had beaten them while under the 
influence of strong drink. He would send these men to jail, 
and in a few days the wife would come and beg them out. 
He spoke of a mother who called upon him a few days ago 
in behalf of her son — a bright-looking young man — who, 
while under the influence of strong drink, had attempted to 



398 THE TKUE PATH : 

take the life of another. He also made mention of a boy 
who was brought before him a few days ago drunk upon 
whisky sent for by his mother. He then mentioned the case 
of Judge Nelson, who was related to a gifted member of the 
Supreme Court of the United States, and who himself had 
filled high positions under the government. He had seen this 
man fighting his hat in the gutters of our streets. 

From intemperance he had gotten so low that he would go 
into lawyers' offices and steal the books and pawn them for 
liquor. He at last went into private houses and stole cloth- 
ing, for which offense he was now in the Albany Penitentiary. 
He made a beautiful appeal, in closing, to all who had not 
signed the pledge to do so and give the world the benefit of a 
sober life. Short addresses were made by Colonel Gray, of 
Kentucky ; William Vermilya, of New Jersey ; Mr. Jester, of 
Baltimore; George W. Francis, and others. Colonel David- 
son recited, by request, a poem, entitled "The Flowing Bowl." 
A large number signed the pledge. 

Mr. Murphy was aided in his Washington work by a corps 
of able coadjutors, not only "his own boys," as the men re- 
formed by his influence proudly called themselves, but dis- 
tinguished professional men. Among the latter were such 
men as Rev. Drs. Newman, Domer, Rankin, Parker and 
Mason, Rev. Mr. Bonham, Prof. Moffat and Cunningham, of 
West Virginia. Night after night the churches in which the 
meetings were held were so thronged that overflow meetings 
were held, and hundreds of men signed the pledge every 
night. In a city like Washington, where the interests of life 
are complex, and intense political feeling is continually raging, 
it was not to be expected, of course, that temperance would 
so absorb public thought as to be the talk of every knot 
gathered on a. street corner, as had been the case in Elmira, 
Troy, Springfield, Pittsburgh ; even, indeed, in the great city 
of Philadelphia. Yet there was a powerful and deep under- 
current that not the less made its power felt, and stirred 
society at its roots, for the growth and fructification of good. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 399 

Washington's birthday was celebrated with a grand tem- 
perance parade, which was one of the most notable events of 
the Murphy season in that city. Every pains was taken to 
make the procession a representative one, and as a showing of 
the widely-extended and strongly-rooted sympathy with the 
total abstinence cause in Washington, it had a great interest 
for the temperance people of the nation. Although the in- 
trenchments of the demon of rum are strong in Washington, 
owing to the great complexity and ferment of the political 
elements, yet the good fight was waged under Murphy, with 
an enthusiasm full of promise in the future. His visit was 
like Sheridan's famous ride ; it restored the battle fainting 
into defeat and weakheartedness. The morning of February 
22 opened with rain, and it was feared that the day would be 
so inclement as to make the parade a failure. But at noon it 
had cleared away, and an immense throng gathered in the 
vicinity of the City Hall, whence the procession was to start. 

The scene in the neighborhood of the City Hall was a very 
lively one, as the different societies, with banners flying and 
drums beating, came upon the ground, and the aids to the 
chief marshal were kept busy assigning them their places in 
the line. When the procession started, the district artillery, 
which was stationed near the Capitol, fired a salute. The 
line was formed in the following order : 

Detachment of mounted police, chief marshal and as- 
sistants. 

Pistoria's Band — First division, composed of the Junior 
Rechabites, Independent Order of Rechabites, Eagle and 
Junior Eagle, Phoenix Tent, No. 12.; Capitol, Washington, 
Heber, and Friendship Tents — in all, 530 — under the marshal- 
ship of William Jones, assisted by A. M. Sprague and Wil- 
liam Hall. This division wore red scarfs, and presented a 
very neat appearance, although the majority were rather 
young reformers. 

Second Division — Sons of Temperance — Crystal Fount, 
South Washington, Equal, and Howard Divisions, and the 



400 THE TRUE PATH; 

Grand Division Sons of Temperance. The subordinate lodges 
wore white collars, and the Grand Lodge, red. Junior Order 
of Good Templars, with several banners and flags, and the 
Grand Lodge of Templars. In all, 590 men. 

Third Division — Headed by a full drum corps, East Wash- 
ington Reform Club, wearing blue rosette ; Franklin Legion, 
headed by a large flag ; the True Blue and Home Dash away 
Clubs, of Baltimore, headed by a blue banner, on which was 
inscribed the date of the organization of the club, December 
30, 1877, and the motto, "In God We Trust," and the South 
Washington Reform Club, which bore several handsome flags 
and a banner with the following : " Peace and Happiness at 
Home ;" " Good Name and Character Abroad ;" " We Will 
Not Follow the Paths in which Our Fathers Fell." This 
division numbered 560 men, marshalled by A. J. Bo wen, of 
the Baltimore Dashaways, assisted by Noah Gill, C. B. Bal- 
lard, and Edward Romosier, and was the finest body in line. 

The fourth division was headed by a full band, and com- 
prised the Union Chapel Temperance Society, Dashaway Re- 
form Club, Independent Order of Jonadabs, Pioneer Council, 
with white silk banner, several flags, and the representation of 
an iron-clad, Centennial Junior, Centennial and Purity Coun- 
cils. This was the largest division in line, consisting of 780 
men, under the direction of Joseph Williams, who had as aids 
Oliver Leich, G. Nelson, Columbus Clark, and C. E. O'Conner. 
The rear of the procession was brought up by a large four- 
horse wagon, in which was seated some of the older members 
of the different organizations who were unable to walk, and 
twelve open barouches, in which were seated the officers of the 
different societies and a number of ladies. The procession 
reached the executive mansion about three o'clock, and was 
reviewed by the President, who seemed highly pleased with 
the temperance army of the District. The streets through 
w r hich the procession passed were thronged with spectators, 
and a great many private houses and stores were decorated. 
Altogether it was a very imposing display, and reflected great 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. ' 401 

credit on the projectors. After passing over the route pre- 
scribed, the procession returned to the City Hall, where it was 
dismissed, and the streets in the vicinity were particularly 
lively as the different societies dropped out of the ranks and 
marched to their respective lodge-rooms. 

The Dashaway Club was preceded by Charley Nye, Joseph 
Williams and J. M. Gray, marching arm-in-arm, while in the 
rear was " Bud " Eggleston mounted on a gray horse and hold- 
ing aloft a large bouquet, of w T hich he seemed very proud. 

A section of one of the societies was represented by about 
twenty-five young ladies, who " marched like veterans," and 
were enthusiastically cheered along the whole route. 

The only visiting delegation in line was the Baltimore Dasha- 
ways, about one hundred strong, who were the recipients of 
many complimentary allusions for their soldierly bearing and 
fine appearance. 

The majority of the societies wore their regalias, and pre- 
sented a very neat appearance. 

The Blue Ribbon Boys, although not in uniform, called 
forth many remarks as some face which had been long familiar 
as a bar-room denizen was seen helping the cause of temper- 
ance by his presence, and showing that something good can 
come out of Nazareth. 

The Franklin Temperance Legion, composed of "typos," 
turned out sixty men, under the marshalship of George Pierce. 
They carried a large banner, which was inscribed on one side, 
as follows : " Franklin Temperance Legion, organized January 
8, 1878 — We will stick to the pledge, binding ourselves to 
total abstinence, and press on to victory ;" on the other side, 
" Temperance will purify the press." 

When the procession passed Secretary Sherman's house on 
K street, they were treated to water. The Secretary and Mrs. 
Sherman invited all to come in, and the yard was filled with 
thirsty mortals for a long time. 

The evening of the same day was a magnificent era of 
temperance feeling and talk — one long to be remembered in 



402 ' THE TBTTE PATH; 

i 
the annals of the cause in Washington. Three immense meet- 
ings were held and many hundreds signed the pledge. 

The largest gathering was at the K street market house, 
where several telling speeches were made. Mr. Charley Nye 
presided, and the following gentlemen acted as vice-presidents ; 
Silas Boyce, of the Sons of Temperance; Samuel Boyce, 
Rechabites ; W. H. Norton, Jonadabs ; Joseph Williams, 
Dash away s ; J. S. Gurley, Good Templars ; Rev. Dr. Noble, 
South Washington Reform Club ; T. H. Marsh, East Washing- 
ton Reform Club. 

Mr. Charles M. Nye opened with a short speech, in which he 
stated he was very tired after the marching of the day. One 
of his friends asked him this morning if there was going to be 
a procession, and he told him yes, if only he and the Marine 
Band went over the course ; but four thousand five hundred 
seemed to be of the same mind, for when the time came fully 
that number were found in the procession, and he was glad 
that to-night there were four thousand five hundred happy 
homes — homes in which the drunkard's uniform was thrown 
aside, which was a linen duster in winter and an overcoat in 
summer. He had seen a man in this uniform, and he did not 
look well in it. In conclusion, Mr. Nye said he was glad to 
introduce one whom they would be glad to hear — the Rev. 
Father Kane. 

This gentleman then made an interesting address, after 
which Mr. A. J. Bowen, president of the Dashaway Club of 
Baltimore, was introduced. He related the interest taken in 
temperance in Baltimore, and thought every one should work 
with the Bible in one hand and pledge in the other. Let 
every one take the motto " In God we trust." There is in 
every man's heart, the speaker said, a better nature, and it 
should be brought out. He exhorted his listeners to come 
forward and be men ; to sign the pledge and receive the help 
of the temperance and Christian people. They should first, 
however, ask God's help. His last words were : "God bless 
the temperance cause. Let us go on in the great work." 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 403 

The next to speak was Mr. D. P. Holloway, who referred to 
the day and its associations. He thought that if the great 
institutions of this country were to be carried on it would be 
necessary to carry on also the temperance work. When in- 
temperance gets the upper hand, our institutions will go under. 
Great empires have fallen through this, the greatest evil that 
ever existed. He hoped, in conclusion, that the battle-cry of 
temperance would ring out all through this land, like steel to 
steel when armies meet. 

Mr. Budd Eggleston, popularly known as " one of the boys," 
made a splendid appeal, too short by half. He referred to his 
past life, and told the men who wanted to reform not to put 
their trust anywhere but in God. 

Mr. Ned Humphrey then added his interesting testimony to 
what had been given. He said if every one felt as strongly 
on the subject as he did they would all be out-and-out tem- 
perance men. 

Justice Mills, in a short address, said that where the temper- 
ance cause needed a soldier there he would always be. He 
hoped the demonstration of the day would not be in vain, and 
that great good would follow it. 

At the Congregational church the meeting was one of the 
most successful yet held. After an eloquent address by Mr. 
Murphy, a large number of gentlemen stepped forward and 
signed the pledge, after which Mr. James H. Vermilya was 
introduced and made an excellent address, followed by T. M. 
Wilkins, Captain Sturdivant, and others. 

The overflow meeting at the Ninth street Methodist church, 
was an exceedingly large one. Addresses were made by 
Charles A. Harvey, Jr., Rev. W. H. Daniels, of Chicago, and 
Mr. Thomas Edward Murphy. 

The harmony of the Washington revival was somewhat 
rudely disturbed by the imbroglio between Mr. Murphy and 
some of the local temperance leaders. The reports of the 
trouble, flashed over the wires throughout the land, and freely 
commented on far and wide, exaggerated the importance of 



404 THE TKUE PATH; 

the matter very largely ; but it proved one thing most conclu- 
sively. Aside from the immediate results of the difference in 
Washington, the interest and discussion the news provoked in 
all parts of the land showed triumphantly the strong hold the 
great temperance evangelist has on the hearts of the nation, 
and how eagerly each step in his progress is looked for by all 
those interested in the welfare of their fellow beings. With- 
out entering into the details of this provoking affair, a brief 
statement will interest our readers. 

There had been among the local organizations for some time 
previous to Mr. Murphy's arrival a feeling of inharmony. 
A temperance revival had already been under way in the city 
when the evangelist was invited to come, and it is not unchar- 
itable in the light of all the facts to guess that more than one 
of the resident leaders in the temperance cause felt a secret 
irritation in the anticipation of Murphy's coming, as a thing 
likely to lessen the honor and dignity of the local orators and 
workers in the light of the overshadowing importance and 
strength of the visitor. It is not the first time that selfish and 
Unworthy motives have marred the harmony of a great and 
philanthropic movement. 

When Mr. Murphy accepted the invitation to come at $200 
per week, which had been his regular salary for many months, 
the managers proposed to raise the funds by two pay nights at 
Lincoln Hall each week, the surplus to be used for paying off the 
debts of the Young Men's Christian Association. This propo- 
sition to raise money caused the first immediate outbreak, 
though the feeling of dissatisfaction had been long rankling. 

It was urged that the free meetings had been very prosperous 
before Mr. Murphy had been called for ; that an admission fee 
to a temperance meeting was bad policy, and subjected the cause 
to the sneers of its opponents, and that those members of the 
committee who professed to be so philanthropic could do fully 
as much good by helping the meetings under the central or- 
ganization. 

As Mr. Murphy himself was opposed to an admission fee 



OK. GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 405 

the matter was dropped, and things ran smoothly for a 
while. 

The second outbreak seemed to be a personal quarrel be- 
tween Messrs. Nye and Dunning, who were the principal 
organizers of the local work under the auspices of the Central 
Temperance Union. As a consequence, Mr. Dunning left 
Washington to pursue his work elsewhere, and Mr. Nye took 
occasion to indicate some feeling of dislike toward Mr. 
Murphy. He commented very sharply on Mr. Murphy's ab- 
sence from the great Market House meeting on the night of 
Washington's birthday, as large numbers of the auditors were 
deeply disappointed in not seeing and hearing the great tem- 
perance reformer. 

Mr. Murphy claimed, on the other hand, that he was to have 
gone in a procession ; that a carriage was to have been sent 
for him, and that he received no formal invitation to the even- 
ing meeting. 

Mr. Nye's argument was that Mr. Murphy accepted the in- 
vitation to the Market House meeting, and that it was under- 
stood to walk in the procession like the others. 

We will not follow up the details of this little difficulty 
further. It is enough to say that the mass of the temperance 
people in Washington sustained and indorsed Mr. Murphy, 
and severely deprecated the course of his opponents. 

Not the least important event that occurred during the 
Murphy temperance season at the national capital was the 
forty-fifth anniversary meeting of the Congressional Temper- 
ence Society, Senator Ferry presiding. The secretary, Rev. 
Dr. Chickering, presented a report with an interesting outline 
of the origin and history of the society since 1833, when Lewis 
Cass, Secretary of War, was its first president. Earnest and 
eloquent addresses were made by the presiding officer, and 
Hon. Hiram Price, of Iowa, and Rev. A. M. Powell, of New 
York. The secretary said he had just received the signature 
of President Hayes, the fourteenth in succession, to the fol- 
lowing : 



406 THE TRUE PATH; 



PRESIDENTIAL DECLARATION". 

" Being satisfied from observation and experience, as well as 
from medical testimony, that ardent spirits, as a drink, is not 
only needless, but hurtful, and that the entire disuse of it 
would tend to promote the health, the virtue, and the happi- 
ness of the community, we hereby express our conviction that 
should the citizens of the United States, and especially the 
young men, discontinue entirely the use of it, they would not 
only promote their own personal benefit, T>ut the good of our 
country, and the world. 

"James Madison, Andrew Jackson, J. Q. Adams, M. Van 
Buren, John Tyler, James K. Polk, Z. Taylor, Millard Filmore, 
Franklin Pierce, James Buchanan, Abraham Lincoln, Andrew 
Johnson, IT. S. Grant, R. B. Hayes." 

While Washington was thus stirred up by the temperance 
reform, its neighbor, Georgetown, also felt the workings of 
the same glorious influence. A series of meetings were held 
concurrent with those in- Washington, and as an example of 
the work done in this city, we give a brief account of one held 
at the Dunbarton Street Church under the immediate direction 
of Mr. Murphy. 

Mr. J. T. Murray, pastor of Congress Street Methodist 
Protestant Church, offered up a fervent prayer. The congre- 
gation sang with great effect, under the direction of Mr. Wil- 
son, "What Shall the Harvest Be ?" 

Mr. Murphy then introduced Mr. Dewey as one of " his 
boys." Mr. Dewey made an address of about ten minutes' 
length, and was frequently interrupted by applause. 

Mr. Murphy was introduced and made an address replete 
with eloquence and wit, and was frequently interrupted by 
applause. During Mr. Murphy's remarks the singers from the 
overflow meeting at the Curtis school-building arrived, and as 
they passed up the church aisle they were received with ap- 
plause, while the vast audience sang " Hold the Fort." An 
invitation was then extended to those present to come forward 
and sign the pledge, and 110. went forward and subscribed to 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKA1STCE. 407 

the pledge, during which the congregation sang an appropriate 
hymn followed by the chorus, " Harvest Home," and the hymn 
" Rescue the Perishing." Colonel Gray, of Kentucky, was 
next introduced, and made a stirring speech, which was fre- 
quently interrupted by applause. 

The hymn " Hold the Fort " was sung with telling effect. 

Ed. Murphy was then introduced, and made a very effective 
speech. He was followed by Mr. Francis Murphy, Mr. Harris, 
and Dr. Murray, of 'the M. P. Church, w T ho earnestly thanked 
Mr. Murphy for coming to Georgetown, and for the good he 
had effected. Afterward Mr. Murphy made another interest- 
ing address. The benediction having been pronounced, the 
congregation was dismissed, and as the vast audience passed 
out the hall the church choir, which was located within the 
altar, sang "Draw me Nearer." 

The last regular meeting held under Francis Murphy's 
auspices at Washington took the shape of a complimentary 
testimonial. The Congregational church, in which this 
pleasant affair occurred, was ornamented with the American 
and Irish flags. At intervals were the inscriptions " Prohibi- 
tion," " Hope," " Faith," " Charity," etc. Directly in front 
of the organ loft was a magnificent arch with the mottoes 
"Glory to God," "Good Will to Men," and "In God We 
Trust." Seated on the platform were Messrs. Francis Murphy, 
Sturdivant, Gray, Edward Murphy, Hon. William P. Frye, 
Drs. Rankin, Parker, Dorner, Hon. Mr. Ellsworth, and others. 

The leading event of the evening was the address of Mr. 
Frye, who had been the prosecuting attorney in the trial of 
Mr. Murphy for murder at Portland, Maine. This' address was 
of great interest. The orator sketched in a most dramatic and 
sympathetic style his connection with the early life of the 
great temperance evangelist. 

He related the history of the trial of Mr. Murphy in a man- 
ner which brought tears to many eyes, and deep sobs were 
heard throughout the entire congregation. He also said that 
he had the honor to be the first man who ever sent a man to 



408 THE TRUE PATH ; 

jail for selling whisky, and that man received ten months. 
He said that if God would fill this land with such convicts as 
Mr. Murphy, it would be a land of rejoicing instead of sorrow, 
murder, drunkenness, criminals, &c. During his remarks he 
was frequently interrupted by bursts of applause. At the 
conclusion of his remarks he was presented with a beautiful 
bouquet. 

Francis Murphy delivered an address. He related his life ; 
the manner in which he became indicted for murder ; his trial ; 
his separation from his family, his stay in jail, and the kind- 
ness of the jailer and family ; his conversion, through the in- 
fluence of Captain Sturdivant, and finally his release and 
restoration to his family. He spoke in such a manner as to 
thoroughly arouse the sympathies of his audience, and there 
was scarcely a dry eye in the house. At the conclusion of his 
remarks he was presented with an abundant supply of bou- 
quets and a beautiful testimonial from the Sons of Temperance. 
The centre-piece was made of pink silk, in the shape of a 
shield, wrought in flowers. Upon the face were the words, 
" God bless you." The shield was set in a panel of deep blue, 
forming a square. Above the shield upon the panel were the 
words, in gilt, " To Francis Murphy." Below were the words, 
" From the Sons of Temperance, Washington, D. C, March 
1, 1878." This was the handiwork of two ladies, and was in- 
closed in a neat, black frame. 

On the day following the last of Mr. Murphy's stay in 
Washington, he presided at a grand mass meeting of temper- 
ance people, the object of which was stated to be the organi- 
zation of a Washington branch of the National Temperance 
Union, whose united membership reached 9,000,000, and 500 
active workers in the field. The following officers were elected: 
President, Rev. J. E. Rankin ; Vice Presidents, Rev. David 

Wilson, J. W. Reynolds, A. H. Vermilya, Dewey, and 

Col. J. W. Gray ; Corresponding Secretary, Henry S. Berlin ; 
Recording Secretary, F. M. Bradley ; Treasurer, Elphonzo 
Youngs ; Executive Managers, Thomas Hamilton, R. M. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 409 

Stoddard, T. P. Pendall, O. F. Presbry, and Rev. E. G. Gray. 
A constitution was adopted, and the organization perfected 
tinder the name of the Washington Christian Temperance 
Union. 

On the same night there was also an organization on the 
part of the ladies of a Christian Temperance Alliance, with a 
purpose of co-operating with the other society by rendering 
aid to the families of reformed men, and the rendering of 
those acts of systematic charity which are so helpful in build- 
ing up the cause of temperance. 

The adjourned meeting of the Congressional Temperance 
Society, on the same evening, showed the desirableness of 
perpetuating the movement, notwithstanding the variety of 
movements in the same direction. Hon. L. W. Ballou, M. C, 
from Rhode Island, vice-president of the society, made an 
admirable opening address, followed by the secretary, Dr. 
Chickering, with some suggestive statements as to the results 
of his canvass of the 45th and previous Congresses. He read 
an extract from the journal of the first Continental Congress, 
102 years ago last Wednesday, recommending "to the legis- 
latures of the United States immediately to pass laws the 
most effectual for putting an immediate stop to the pernicious 
practice of distilling, by which the most extensive evils are 
likely to be derived if not quickly prevented." Hon. T. J. 
Henderson, of Illinois, gave a brief and earnest address, fol- 
lowed by Col. J. F. Hoy, in an extended and eloquent appeal, 
founded on his own sad history for seven years of the time 
since he commenced practice in the same court with President 
Hayes. 

In thus recording the temperance work in Washington, it 
has been thought desirable to sketch the different branches of 
reformatory work, though they may not seem to be directly 
connected with the special mission of Mr. Murphy himself ; for, 
as before stated, there had been a local revival before the advent 
of the now celebrated temperance apostle. The presence of 
Murphy had the effect of building what would probably other- 



410 THE TKUE PATH; 

wise have been a temporary and spasmodic action into a per- 
manent and deep-reaching work. From the national capital 
Mr. Murphy proceeded to Philadelphia, where he was to con- 
duct a brief series of meetings, and thence he was engaged to 
open the great work in the Boston vineyard. 

Among the recent phenomena of temperance reform there is 
nothing to compare in picturesqueness, intensity, enthusiasm 
and sweep with the Francis Murphy movement, which we have 
described in detail in the foregoing chapters. A backward 
glance at this will reveal it in its grand entirety. It had been 
progressing quietly for some years in different parts of the 
country, and attained but little more than local celebrity. 
During the fall and winter of 1876-"77 it reached Pittsburgh 
Pa. Commencing quietly, it grew apace, and finally culmi- 
nated in one of those extraordinary uprisings of the moral 
sense which sometimes convulse great communities as with an 
earthquake, reaching down to the very roots of society, and 
effecting results in a short time, which otherwise many years 
would fail to achieve. Mr. Murphy was about three months 
in Pittsburgh, and during that time the astounding number of 
eighty thousand men signed the pledge. All classes of society 
felt the impetus of the Irish reformer's eloquence and enthusi- 
asm. Wealth and fashion locked hands with squalor and misery, 
and in the Murphy meetings, night after night, could be seen 
silks, diamonds and seal-skin cloaks rustling on the same seat 
with the rags and tatters of the poor. People of wealth gave 
freely of their abundance to advance the movement, and the 
milk of human kindness poured freely from the fountains 
unlocked by the voice of the temperance orator. This was 
the inaugural point of Francis Murphy's celebrity, and since 
that time his name has rung from one end of the land to 
the other in connection with the great cause of temperance 
reform. The next great field of his efforts, after a short visit 
to the West, was Philadelphia, were six weeks of labor were 
attended with results hardly less significant and extraordinary 
than at the great manufacturing city at the junction of the 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 411 

Alleghany and Monongahela rivers. Great throngs signed the 
pledge of reform, hundreds of saloon-keepers among them, and 
the hearts of innumerable wives and mothers were made glad. 

Thence, sweeping onward with resistless impetuosity, it 
reached Elmira, Troy, Springfield, and Washington, reaping a 
grand harvest of reformed lives in each city, and leaving be- 
hind a permanent and healthy force for the redemption of 
social life from its greatest curse. 

A summary of the results wrought by Murphy, during the 
last four or five years, measuring, these as nearly as possible, 
would indicate that over a million of people have been in- 
duced, directly or indirectly, to sign the pledge of total abstin- 
ence through his influence. Some statements have been made 
doubling or even trebling this amount. But there is always 
somewhat of exaggeration in the enthusiasm which underlies 
the admiration of mankind for a great work of this nature. 
The more moderate figure, while certainly within the truth, is 
a result so great as to place the Murphy crusade against rum 
as one of the grandest achievements in reform during the last 
century. Nothing is gained by exaggerating that which is in 
itself so great. Francis Murphy has been and is a mighty 
torch, flaming with enthusiastic devotion to a grand cause, 
and lighting up the hearts of humanity with an illumination, 
which exposes the heights and depths, the infinite misery, suf- 
fering, and wickedness involved in the love of stimulants. 
Others, perhaps, have been more successful in organizing re- 
sults, in systematizing feelings once kindled into a permanent 
and steady glow ; in surrounding the reformed drunkard with 
restraints and conditions that assist him in fighting the battle, 
which has only commenced when he signs the pledge of total 
abstinence, through to a final victory over the love of drink- 
ing. But to every man is given his special power and function. 
" Paul may plant and Apollos may w T ater, but God alone 
giveth the increase." And it is by the power of God that 
these men work so successfully. If a praying, earnest 
Christian heart were not at the foundation of their efforts, if 



412 THE TEUE PATH. 

they did not draw their inspiration from a profound conviction 
that they were instruments in the hands of a Higher Power, 
we should look in vain for the wonderful achievements they 
have wrought. 

" God bless Francis Murphy ! " is the sincere cry of thousands 
and hundreds of thousands of men and women. That he may 
long live to continue his mighty work, and advance the cause 
of which he is so splendid an exponent, is the prayer of every 
one that loves humanity, and looks forward to that regeneration 
of society, so beautifully pictured in the Biblical figure of the 
milleniuna. 



PART IV. 



THE 



LIFE AND WORK 

OF 

DR. HENRY A. REYNOLDS 




DR. HENRY A. REYNOLDS. 



THE 

LIFE AND WORK 

OP 

DR. HENRY A. REYNOLDS 



CHAPTER XXn. 

THE EARLY CAREER OF A REMARKABLE MAN. — THE OCCASIOH 

OF HIS REFORM AND CONVERSION. FIRST ORGANIZATION 

OF REFORM CLUBS.— WORK IN MAINE AND MASSACHU- 
SETTS. 

No history of the recent temperance movements in the 
United States would have any completeness without doing 
justice to the splendid results attained under the leadership of 
Dr. • Henry A. Reynolds. This laborer in the reform vineyard 
is not so universally known in the Eastern states, though 
Maine and Massachusetts were the early field of his labors. 
His most remarkable work, that which has given him a 
national reputation, has been in Michigan and Illinois. His 
efforts in detail, owing to his methods, have not in them that 
popular and picturesque interest which attaches to the 
Murphy movement. But a study of the Reynolds work ex- 
poses matters of interest to the more thoughtful student of 
social phenomena, not less than that of his more eloquent 
and magnetic compeer, and stands equally on its own basis as 
an astonishing fact. Like all the men who have accomplished 



418 THE TRUE PATH ; 

great things, Reynolds passed through a terrible personal ex* 
perience, for the roots of strength are nurtured in suffering. 
His power was born of his own wretchedness and misery in 
those days, when he was a slave to the fearful love of alcohol, 
and a constant sufferer from its effects. 

In spite of all the extraordinary factors that have moved in 
it, the history of temperance reform has no feature more im- 
portant, or more interesting, than that which bears the soul- 
stirring and appropriate watchword — "Dare to do right !" 
The thousands upon thousands that have enlisted themselves 
in the mighty lists that carry this banner, and proudly wear 
the red-ribbon badge, are bent upon one aim, a fight against 
intemperance and in favor of total abstinence. The success 
these people have achieved is very great, and by their means 
temperance reform has been made firmer, surer and more 
certain. 

In places where but a few years ago temperance move- 
ments were never thought of, the entire community has be- 
come a branch of the reform, and has turned out zealous 
workers in the noble cause. 

The reform clubs were inaugurated by men who were ad- 
dicted to intoxicating liquors for many years. These men, 
aroused to their condition, the fearful risks they ran, and the 
awful fate that awaited them, saw the necessity of a change 
and a decided reformation. They placed themselves in the 
care of God, and besought His merciful protection and guid- 
ance. Earnest supplication is heard and answered by Provi- 
dence. In God this movement finds its best and truest advo- 
cate ; in prayer, its greatest help and stronghold. In this 
instance it and the woman's crusade are alike. This depend- 
ence upon Divine assistance helps those who are too weak to 
control their appetite, and they go readily to Him for the 
strength and power, by which alone they can be saved and 
preserved. 

Mr. J. K. Osgood, of Gardiner, Maine, started a movement 
among drinking men of his native town in January, 1872. 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 419 

He himself was a reformed man. He belonged to a family 
of high social standing, but fifteen years of incessant indul- 
gence in intoxicants brought him as low as any man ever fell. 
The year previous to his reformation found him out of busi- 
ness, friendless and entirely moneyless. His description of 
that time and what followed is highly interesting and very 
pathetic. It appears that on his return home late one evening 
he saw, through the window of his house, his wife waiting for 
him, as was her wont. Her patience and devotion, as well as 
her pitiable condition, went right to his heart, and made him 
feel so very badly that then and there he made up his mind to 
abstain forever, God helping him. 

This noble resolve he was able to keep, earnest and devout 
prayer sustaining him in it ; and some months later he entered 
public life as a temperance reformer. He was led to this step 
by the reformation, through his means, of an old friend, an 
attorney-at-law, who had been addicted to the use of liquors 
fully as long as himself. 

Mr. Osgood drew up the following call for a meeting, 
signed by his friend, and had it inserted in the newspapers : 

"Reformers' Meeting. — There will be a meeting of 
reformed drinkers at City Hall, Gardiner, Friday evening, 
January 19, at seven o'clock. 

" A cordial invitation is extended to all occasional drinkers, 
constant drinkers, hard drinkers, and young men who are 
tempted to drink, to -come and hear what rum has done for us." 

The hall was crowded by curious people. Mr. Osgood and 
his friend spoke with great power and eloquence, born of suffer- 
ing and deliverance, and impressed the crowd in no slight 
manner. This initial meeting was very successful, and consid- 
erable enthusiasm was aroused in the people. 

The result was the immediate organization of the " Gardiner 
Temperance Reform Club." In a very short space of time the 
club numbered one hundred men, all of whom had been, 
more or less, habitual drunkards. 

The great success of the movement and the excitement and 



420 THE TRUE PATH J 

enthusiasm of the people travelled all over the country, and 
in a few months reform clubs had sprung up here, there, and 
everywhere, their membership numbering thousands. 

From Maine Mr. Osgood went to the State of Massachu- 
setts, and here did noble work under the auspices of the 
Massachusetts Temperance Alliance. Fully forty clubs were 
organized in this State alone. 

At the head of the mighty army, wearing the red ribbon, 
stands the man that everyone loves and honors — Dr. Henry 
A. Reynolds. 

It is beyond dispute that often when the shadows are dark- 
est, and when the despairing heart well-nigh breaks with in- 
tense grief and long suffering, and it seems utterly useless to 
live another day, light comes to us — making all things bright 
and full of hope again. Well has that sweet singer said : 

"Grim clouds precede the brightest morn; 
The darkest hour's before the dawn." 

We are apt to succumb to what, to us, has the stern bearing 
of fatality, and weakly bowing under it, let loose our hold on 
life, and float down the swift current. A way is sometimes 
then pointed out to us, which we unhesitatingly follow ; for 
we know He has marked it out with an especial meaning, and 
•we are bound to follow. We take our cross and gladly bear 
the burden, no matter how heavy it may be. 

Henry A. Reynolds had stood in dark shadow for many 
years. Not many men have gone through as much degrada- 
tion and adversity as he ; and not many have had such an ex- 
perience as that which now crowns him, and makes him a 
beacon light to thousands upon thousands of men coiled in the 
folds of that vicious and terrible evil we call alcohol. It was 
quite early in life that the desire for intoxicating drink took 
possession of him, and it is only of late years that he has been 
successful in destroying it. 

. This awful appetite grew with his growth, and eventually 
brought him to the brink of a frightful abyss which yawned 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 421 

before him, and threatened his life. He was born in Bangor, 
Maine, in the year 1839. He entered the Medical College of 
Harvard University, and was there w r ell known and respected 
for his studious application, his fine natural abilities, and the 
remarkable ease with which he mastered every branch of edu- 
cation he undertook. He graduated with high honors, and 
left the classic walls of old Harvard with many wishes and 
wise predictions relative to his future success. 

His life was cast in circles where the use of wines and 
liquors was regarded as a matter of course. He was entirely 
left to the influences of fashionable life ; and, like so many 
young men of talent and promise in the same circumstances, 
he began to dissipate. A strong desire for drink took posses- 
sion of him, and giving way to it he sank lower and lower in 
the social scale. 

The late war broke out, and following the bent of an ardent 
inclination, he enlisted in the Union army as assistant surgeon 
in the First Maine Regiment of Heavy Artillery. He served 
during the last two years of the war, and at the close of the 
long struggle he returned home honorably discharged, and 
entered upon the professional practice of a physician in his 
native city. He commenced very successfully ; but the grow- 
ing habit of intemperance increased with him to such an ex- 
tent that his practice was seriously injured. "Dr. Reynolds'- 
practice," one of the leading physicians of Bangor says, " if 
attended to, would have been worth at least five thousand 
dollars a year." For a time he occupied the high position of 
city physician. His downward course was rapid, and he soon 
became a slave to his awful appetite. In telling the story of 
his life, the doctor says : 

" I am one of the unfortunate men who inherited an appetite 
for strong drink. I love liquor as well as a baby loves milk. 
When I was but a child of less than eight years of age I 
began to strengthen that appetite first by drinking cider. 
Cider I call the devil's kindling-wood. Next I used to drink 
native wines, then ale and lager bier, and the stronger drinks. 



422 THE TRUE PATH 



I drank at parties, weddings, dances, etc.; I had liquors on my 
table while keeping house, and treated all friends who called 
on me in my office or at home, for this I thought necessary to 
their proper entertainment. I have really been a drinking 
man, to a greater or less extent, for twenty years, the last six 
of these years to a greater rather than a less extent. I was a 
periodical drinker from necessity, as I could not drink all the 
time ; but a periodical drunk with me usually lasted six weeks. 
I have had the delirium tremens, and suffered the torments of 
the lost ; but, for all that, I brought myself to the verge of 
the same suffering a hundred times afterward, knowing that 
I could not, in all probability, live through another attack. I 
was a slave to my appetite, and actually did not know how to 
rid myself of it. 

"I am compelled to give the same painful testimony that so 
many do, that no one asked me to turn over a new leaf, or 
said an encouraging w r ord to me in the way of urging me to 
try and live a sober life. Had some kind friend shown me 
the way out of it, and whispered in my ear that I could be a 
better man, I might have been so. I attribute my salvation 
from a drunkard's grave to the Woman's Temperance Crusade ; 
or, rather, I consider myself as a brand plucked from the 
burning through the prayers of the Christian women of 
America." 

Dr. Reynolds, finding himself on the verge of delirium tre- 
mens, sought, as a last resort, help from God in overcoming 
his strong appetite for alcoholic drinks. 

He knelt in his office and yielded himself to God as His 
servant, and swore a solemn and sacred oath that he would 
sign the pledge publicly as soon as a fitting opportunity 
offered itself. Only two days later the opportunity came. 
The women's crusade of Bangor was conducting a public 
meeting in the City Hall, and he went in to observe it. 

The large audience was much amazed to see him come in, 
for he was notorious for his intemperate habits. The people 
were more amazed when he pressed his way through the mass, 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. / 423 

and reached the pledge-table, where he deliberately signed his 
name. For a little while the place was very still, and then 
such a shout went up ! Then many came forward, shook his 
hand warmly, and most heartily congratulated him on what 
he had done. It was hard to believe he would be able to 
keep the pledge ; but he did. He entered heartily into the 
work, and began to induce others to follow his example. 

He talked to his acquaintances, and spoke at the temperance 
meetings, where he had become a regular attendant. In his 
speeches he eloquently pointed out the many dire consequences 
intoxicating drink brought to its victims, persuaded them to 
sign the pledge, and in other ways sought to draw his unfor- 
tunate and suffering brothers into the new and good life upon 
which he had entered. His work was so acceptable, so suc- 
cessful, that he received numerous invitations to visit other 
places, and address the people upon the subject of total absti- 
nence. He labored earnestly, and grew more and more at- 
tached to the glorious cause day after day. 

However, it soon became evident to him that to insure suc- 
cess and permanency there must be an organization, and he 
conceived the plan, under God, of organizing a Reform Club 
made up wholly of men who had drunk to a greater or less 
extent, believing then, as now, that there exists " between two 
drinking men," to quote his own words " that sympathy which 
cannot exist between a man who has and one who has not 
drunk." Pie published notices in the different daily news- 
papers cordially inviting all drinking men to meet at a certain 
time and place. Eleven came forward at the call, and the Ban- 
gor Reform Club, the very first of the kind, was organized Sep- 
tember 10, 1874, adopting as its motto " Dare to do right." 
Henry A. Reynolds was unanimously elected president of it. 
Other meetings were held ; meanwhile, the members, ^vith 
true missionary zeal, did their utmost to bring in new members, 
and in the course of a few weeks the club numbered hundreds; 
the city was shaken and aroused for God and humanity as 
never before. The success of this movement went all over the 



424 ^ THE TRUE PATH ; 

country like a flash, and created great surprise and* much inter- 
est. Many cordial invitations to inaugurate a similar work 
came from all quarters and were, accepted by Dr. Reynolds 
and his earnest fellow-laborers with zeal and enthusiam. In 
one year Reform Clubs of this kind were organized through- 
out the entire State of Maine. The people entered into the 
movement eagerly, and embraced it heartily and warmly, and 
Dr. Reynolds was received everywhere with great enthusiam. 

The work in Maine was very successful. In three years the 
number of reformed men was given in as forty-six thousand. 

The origin of the red ribbon took place some months after 
the doctor's conversion. He had called a convention of re- 
formed men to meet in Bangor, Maine, and while he was 
seated in his office, the day of the meeting, September 10, 
1874, he fancied that it would be a good idea if the men had 
some sign or badge by which they might recognize each other. 

He thought for a long time, and finally sent his office-boy 
across the street to a dry-goods store for several yards of red 
ribbon. Having obtained this the doctor cut it up into six- 
inch lengths, tied one in the lapel of his coat, and did like- 
wise by all of the delegates. 

Another convention was held in June of the following year, 
at which these men wore the red ribbon in memory of the 
other meeting. Before Dr. Reynolds started out on his 
Massachusetts campaign he made the red ribbon a badge of 
membership of the Reform Club. The ribbon played by far 
a more important part in the State of Michigan than in those, 
of Massachusetts and Maine. In this State it became almost a 
sacred thing. To the reformed men who wore it, it was a 
solemn reminder of their promise of life-long abstinence from 
intoxicating liquors. The wearer of it is respected and ad- 
mired, and it is said that " in some of the Michigan saloons, if 
a man wearing the red ribbon should come in and order a 
glass of liquor, he would be refused." At Jackson, an instance 
of this kind lately occurred, as follows: 

" A reformed man with a red ribbon in his button-hole was 



Oil, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 425 

overcome by his appetite for strong drink, went into a saloon, 
and called for liquor. ' ISTo,' said the saloon-keeper, who had 
known the man as a miserable drunkard for many years, 'I 
will not give you anything to drink. A man who has been 
damaged by liquor as much as you have been, and who has 
been helped by letting it alone, as much as you have, ought to 
know better than to touch it again. Your family are happy, 
too, and I will not be the man to destroy you and them.' " 

Perhaps the best description that has appeared of Dr. 
Hey n olds, is that given by Mrs. S. M. I. Henry, the successful 
missionary of Rockford, 111., and the editor of that clever 
sheet, the Rockford Register, It is as follows: 

" Dr. Reynolds is a man all by himself. He continually 
provokes the inquiry : What is the source of his power ? In 
personal appearance the doctor is rather commanding, meas- 
uring six feet, w r ell proportioned, straight as an arrow, moves 
with energy and grace. His complexion is a little of the florid 
order. He wears a sandy moustache, and in address and gen- 
eral appearance he is a gentleman. He makes no pretensions 
to oratory. His w 7 ords are few ; his style pleasing and 
smooth. He never lifts his voice above the conversational 
tone ; never makes any effort to play on the emotions, but 
deals in stern, naked truth, using his own experience, and that 
of others simply as illustrations. His appeals are to the com- 
mon sense and manhood of his hearers, and to their moral 
feelings. When he tells of his life he uses terms that a half- 
drunken man would understand. He says ' drunkard' instead 
of c inebriate,' and calls himself 'a reformed drunkard.' He 
seems to look at this question of drunkenness and reformation 
from the stand-point of those who have suffered from the one, 
and who are in need of the other ; and the first thought which 
seems to take possession of the unfortunate men who hear 
him is, c Well, now, he was such a man as I ; may be I could 
be saved if I try the same way he did. IHl try.'' 

" The secret of his success is the absolute absence of every- 
thing like pretense, and in the inspiration of work which he 



426 THE TRUE PATH ; 

carries with him, while his own sole reliance is upon the sup-' 
port of God. 'Old Business, 5 he is frequently called ; and 
the thoroughness of his methods of organization warrants the 
title. 

" His creed, which he announces whenever there is occasion 
for it, is this : ' I believe in God ; I believe in prayer ; I be- 
lieve in everything between the two lids of the Bible, whether 
I understand it or not ; and I believe I am a saved man to- 
day, through the instrumentality of the prayers and work of 
the women of my country.' 

" With respect to the various political questions arising in 
temperance, the doctor says : 'Let everything else alone. 
You reformed men have enough business on your hands to 
take care of yourselves, without being made cat's-paws for 
politicians to pull their chestnuts out of the fire.' " 

Mrs. Mary G. Ward, President of the Woman's Temperance 
Union of Salem, Massachusetts, learned of the wonderful 
work of reform progressing in Maine, under the very success- 
ful leadership of Dr. Reynolds, and while at the old Orchard 
Beach Camp-meeting in 1875 she cordially extended an invita- 
tion to him to inaugurate his movement in Massachusetts. 

He went to Salem, and made his first appearance in March, 
1876. A full account of his labor here, as given by himself in 
a report to the Boston Traveller, is as follows : 

" A few months ago I came to Salem by the invitation of 
the Woman's Christian Union for the first time. Then, by 
their aid, and through their prayers, commenced this grand 
awakening, whereby thousands of homes have been made 
happy, and thousands of men have been turned to God. Not 
me is due the praise, but to our Father in heaven, w T ho has 
chosen me to do the work. 

" I believe that women do more for fallen men than men will 
or can do for themselves ; and I thank God that the women of 
the United States had commenced their crusade, and the 
wave had spread eastward till it reached my home in Bangor. 

" We organized a little club of eleven reformed drunkards in 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKASTCE. 42^ 

Bangor, for the purpose of encouraging one another to dare to 
do right ; and from that the movement spread. Once we 
went to St. Johns, New Brunswick, where a small reform club 
was started. It proved to be the little leaven which leavened 
the whole lump, for this club of a few has become a club of 
very many, and its influence has extended through the British 
Provinces. 

" The reform movement seems to me sometimes like the 
crusade of John the Baptist, and if anything can be found to 
do more good I should like to know it. I am in sympathy 
with all kinds of temperance movements and with all branches 
of the Church of God, but this is the work to which God has 
called me, a work like the mission of our blessed Saviour him- 
self, to go out into the highways and byways, hedges and 
ditches, and raise up the fallen ones. 

" Two years ago I was rescued from the verge of a drunk- 
ard's grave by the Christian women of Bangor. I joined the 
Young Men's Crusade Club. It was composed of men who 
had led a sober life, of those who had been moderate drink- 
ers, and of those who had been common drunkards. The re- 
sult was continual quarreling and strife. The organization 
died. It then occurred to me to form a society composed 
entirely of reformed men. There is a bond of sympathy 
between reformed men which binds them together. Such a 
club was formed in Bangor : it increased to an unprecedented 
number. I then resolved henceforth to form such clubs, 
and do all I could for the cause of temperance." 

He worked in Massachusetts about thirteen months, during 
which time he extended his field to Connecticut, New Hamp- 
shire and Rhode Island. The center of his labor, however, 
was in the counties of Essex and Middlesex, though at intervals 
he found his way into the interior of the State. 

Gloucester was one of the first towns he visited. The 
movement here was so signally successful that a list of twenty- 
two vessels, sailing from that port, was published, whose 
entire crews were temperance men, and most of them mem- 



423 THE TPT7E PATH ; 

bers of the Reynolds Reform Club. In Salem, a club of two 
hundred and twenty-five members was formed ; at Marble- 
head, one of two hundred ; in Lynn, one of forty ; in Pea- 
body, one of eighty. Place after place was carried by storm, 
and in a very short space of time there were fully seventy 
red-ribbon, or reform clubs, in this State. He received in 
Salem a complimentary benefit at the conclusion of his labor, 
which was highly gratifying in every particular. He was 
received in every place with grand ovations, and received ad- 
ulation enough to spoil one of the best of men ; but there was 
something always with him that kept him away from all 
dangers, and led him onward. This all-powerful, though in- 
visible presence, saved him from such a peril. He walked 
along his life-path, with clear eyes steadily and hopefully 
gazing heavenward. He who had been a curse and a blot on 
humanity had now become a blessing. He who had been as 
low and as vile as man could be, a habitual sot, was now 
clothed with a light that set the unbelieving world wondering* 
Surely he was one of the appointed of the Lord. 

In speaking of the temperance movement conducted by Dr. 
Reynolds, the Congregatiojialist, of Boston, under the date of 
March 29, 1876, says : 

" The work of Dr. H. A. Reynolds is little short of a 
miracle. - For example, upon Saturday, March 25, he went in 
a furious storm to the town of Ashland, by a night train, met 
a hundred men at the town hall, and talked with them an 
hour in a free, conversational way ; then met a hundred in 
the same place on Sunday afternoon, mostly drinking men. 
He organized a reform club of forty. In the evening 'he ob- 
tained sixty more members to the club, and left town Monday 
morning, leaving a temperance organization which, within a 
few weeks, had gathered in drinking men by the score. This 
work is repeated in three towns and cities every week, and in 
every place with substantially the same success. Within 
eighteen weeks thirteen thousand reformed men have been 
organized by Dr. Reynolds in Eastern Massachusetts. 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. .429 



" His club plan is such that the men hold each other up. 
Eighty-five per cent, of the thirty-four thousand reformed 
men who have taken, the pledge within nineteen months are 
holding to it to this day. 

" At Waltham, the work has been a most remarkable one. 
On Thursday of last week, on his return to that town again, 
Dr. Reynolds was met at the depot by an array of three 
hundred reformed men, and escorted through the principal 
streets, to the vestry of the Congregational Church, where a 
collation had been provided by the ladies of the Christian 
Union. ^In the afternoon and evening there was a grand mass 
meeting, and the reform already accomplished in the town 
corresponds with that in Gloucester This grand temperance 
wave is already reaching the men in the towns in the region 
of Boston." 

Dr. Reynolds carried that great manufacturing city, Lowell, 
completely by storm. At one of the meetings here he de- 
livered with fine effect the following address: 

"I am a graduate of Harvard College, and received a 
thorough medical education ; but I have been drunk four 
times a day in my office, and if there is any worse hell than I 
have suffered I don't want to be there. No nobler class of 
men walk the earth than some who are drinking men. They 
are naturally generous, whole-souled, genial, jolly ; but by 
intemperance their minds become diseased. They become 
scorned and degraded outcasts in the ditch, kept there by 
thoughtless people, less generous and honorable by nature than 
themselves. But for rum, these might be on the throne instead 
of in the gutter. 

" Drunkards are not all fools, as some people believe ; but 
every man who drinks is living a life of self-condemnation. 

" I never insult men who sell liquor. Some men can sell it 
conscientiously, in some cases, because they are educated to it. 
At Gloucester, where I was last year, two rum-sellers have 
left the business and signed the pledge. The only difference 
between the respectable rum-shop and the low groggery is 



430 THE TRITE PATH ; 

that the one finishes up the work the other has commenced. 
The drunken pauper is better than the drunken aristocrat. 

" My sympathies are with the poor men in this temperance 
work, and I wish to reach as many of them as possible ; and 
for this reason, as well as for others, I wish to carry on this 
work not in connection with aristocratic churches, but in non- 
sectarian, non-political, public halls. I represent no organiza- 
tion, and am under the pay of none. 

"At Gloucester the interest in the Reform Club last week 
increased until this morning members of the Temperance Re- 
form Club of that place, numbering three hundred and fifty 
men, marched in procession to the depot with a band of music 
to escort me. 

" On my departure thousands assembled at the depot, and 
many were the expressions of sympathy and friendship I re- 
ceived. The wives of former drunkards were there, with 
their little children in their arms, to bid me God-speed. 
When the train moved off the band played c Auld Lang 
Syne,' and there was singing and cheering by the crowd. 
Now, that don't set me up. I want to create the same in- 
terest here as at Gloucester, and hope to have the united 
assistance of all who claim to be good people. 

" If there are any drinking men here to-night, I want them 
to commence now to dare to do right. It is easier to stop 
drinking now than it will be three weeks from now. Sending 
a drinking man to jail will not make him sober. When he 
comes out the first thing he will do will be to take a drink, if 
he can get it. But of those who take this pledge eighty-five 
per cent, have thus far kept it." 

Major Emery, of Lowell, came forward at the close of the 
meeting, and indorsed the doctor's remarks, and the result 
was a reform club of fifteen hundred members. 

The movement in Lowell and Gloucester was so remarkable 
that Dr. Reynolds was especially invited by the Boston Meth- 
odist Episcopal Preachers' Meeting to appear before them, and 
give some account of his work in the State. This very large 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 431 



and influential body welcomed him most cordially. The Rev. 
Frank Wagner, pastor of the leading Methodist Episcopal 
Church of Lowell, the Rev. Albert Gould, of Gloucester, and 
others who had been co-workers with the doctor, gave testi- 
mony of its great and wonderful power. 

The Rev. Mr. Gould told of the movement in his own city, 
Gloucester, in the following manner, at one of the reform 
meetings in Lowell : " The liquor traffic in Gloucester was 
fearful beyond description. The ministers of the city first 
consulted together, and decided on a series of meetings. 
After a few meetings had been held, Dr. Reynolds' success at 
Salem induced me to secure his services. The work opened 
there with smaller audiences than it had in Lowell ; but the 
interest so increased that the City Hall was engaged for the 
meetings, and it was crowded with vast audiences for four 
nights. The Reform Club first organized consisted of six- 
teen ; it now numbers five hundred and twenty-nine, nearly 
all reformed men, who five weeks ago were drunkards, some 
of them gutter drunkards. The liquor traffic is almost stopped. 
One dealer has hung crape on the door of his saloon. The 
business men of the city stand behind the movement with 
their money ; and the red ribbons, worn as the badge of the 
club, are immensely popular. The best feature of the work is 
its religious element. The pledge signed recognizes God as 
a helper, and the reformed men believe that they need His 
help. No man in Gloucester is so popular to-day as Dr. 
Reynolds." 

The Stoneham Club, which at the beginning had about 
thirty-three members, sprang up to a membership of two 
hundred and five in a limited period. " One of the pleasantest 
peculiarities of this club," says a good authority; "is its 
liberal provision in money for the expense of the club and its 
missionary work." 

Early in the month of April, 1876, a club w^as organized at 
Lawrence. Naturally the liquor interest had a very strong 
hold here, it being one of the great manufacturing places of 



432 THE TBXJE PATH ; 

the State. One of the ministers of the place told Dr. Reynolds 
when he came here that " he was coming into the jaws of 
hell." The brave doctor was ready to come. He said : "I 
have declared my purpose to he to save men of whatever race, 
color, sect or party. I have nothing to do with men's opinions 
or prejudices. Lawrence is, doubtless, a cold place to begin, 
but by proper work great good will be done here." 

The simplicity and good common sense of the doctor's 
methods gave him considerable favor here. The result of his 
work was a Reform Club of fully three thousand members. 
The following episode occurred at Lawrence, and produced 
great good : "At one of the meetings a youth, scarcely fifteen 
years of age, was introduced, who had been a drunkard. This 
lad was too young to be a member of the Reform Club, but 
the boys took hold of the work, and organized a Reform 
Club of their own." No other proof of the earnestness and 
interest in the movement manifested by the women of the city 
is required than the following fact : " Nineteen hundred of 
the leading ladies of the city signed a petition to the local 
authorities against the granting of licenses to sell liquor." 

A State convention of the Reform Clubs was called to meet 
at Lurline Hall in Boston, on May 12, 1876. The object 
of this meeting was to give greater unity and efficiency 
to the work going on throughout the State. Di\ Reynolds re- 
marked in his opening speech that : 

" This meeting is to be called in the interest of no faction, 
no party, and of no individual, but for the good of our un- 
fortunate brothers. We have no ax to grind, but we meet to 
talk of mutual interest. The season has arrived when it 
will be necessary for us to put forth our united efforts to keep 
up the interest in the movement for the next three months ; 
after that the child will be able to stand alone." 

Encouraging reports were handed in by the delegates from 
all points, which clearly indicated a great and successful work 
everywhere. No little talk was occasioned by the determin- 
ation on the doctor's side to keep his clubs free of all political 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. . 433 

questions ; and in this laudable effort he was seconded by the 
very best people of Massachusetts. 

Speaking of this the Springfield -Republican, always a most 
reliable and excellent authority on State topics, says : — 

"The decision of the Reform Clubs not to mjx teetotalism 
with politics is, probably, a settler for the prohibitory party in 
this State, at least as far as this year's canvass is concerned. 
These clubs are by far the most vital temperance associations 
going at present. They have the dew of their youth yet on 
them, believe in themselves and their work, and the prohibi- 
tory party, with these clubs standing aloof, is the merest 
shadow of a shade that ever flitted across politics. Some fifty 
of them were represented at the Lurline Hall, in Boston, day 
before yesterday. The number of delegates elected, including 
self-elected ones, is variously stated at from two hundred 
to four hundred. The meeting became turbulent, got beyond 
the control of the chairman, and stayed there. There was a 
minority element which had no sympathy with the purposes of 
the gathering, and no notion of being suppressed. They vig- 
orously contended that it was the duty of temperance men to 
vote as they prayed, while Brothers Ford, of Boston, Knight, 
of Cambridge, and Scott, of Lowell, were the principal spokes- 
men in the steer-clear-of-politics party. Personalities were 
exchanged in anything but a temperate manner, and a large 
number of delegates left the hall in disgust ; but enough stayed 
to pass the resolution declaring, < That we emphatically con- 
demn the introduction, discussion, or agitation of politics in our 
meetings. 5 

" We make our compliments to the Reform Clubs on their 
good sense." 

A proposition was made to hold a State convention on the 
eve of the presidential election, at Fitchburgh, where the red- 
ribbon movement had met with considerable success, which 
resulted in seventeen hundred names being signed to the 
pledge, and the forming of a Reform Club of over a hundred 
members. September 20 was set aside for the meeting of 



434 THE TEUE PATH ; 

this political convention ; Dr. Reynolds, however, having 
been consulted upon it, wrote as follows: "Put me down 
squarely against that Fitchburgh convention, or any other 
method by which it is proposed to divert the Reform Clubs 
from their legitimate purpose of saving men, or cause them to 
become the tools of politicians. Reformed men have enough 
to do to take care of their own business." 

The convention was held, notwithstanding this decided 
move against it on the doctor's part ; but few red-ribbon 
clubs were there. The political brethren, wisely seeing what 
trouble was in store for them, should they pursue their course, 
and paying some attention to the perfect storm of indigna- 
tion excited all over the State, followed a policy of silence, and 
instead of a political gathering, held a very enjoyable temper- 
ance meeting. 

In Worcester the movement was greeted with a very warm 
and friendly reception, and was successful. A course of liter- 
ary and scientific lectures was given by the president of the 
Reform Club, Mr. Blanchard. This very interesting and suc- 
cessful departure was well received by the public, and Mr. 
Blanchard is to be congratulated on his happy idea. A cor- 
respondent graphically says, in describing the Reynolds move- 
ment here : 

" Probably never before has the heart of the old common- 
wealth been so warm in the cause of temperance as it is at 
this time. Our Reform Club has held meetings in all the 
principal churches, Sunday evenings, all winter, and at each 
and every meeting hundreds have turned away, not being able 
to gain admittance. The club recognizes and develops the 
moral side of the movement, and many members have become 
professing Christians since their reformation. The club has 
nearly eleven hundred enrolled men, all of whom have been 
addicted to the use of alcoholics as a beverage, to a greater or 
less extent, and their influence has reached as many more. 
The club has grown at about the rate of a hundred a month, 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 447 

duct a temperance movement, and organize Reform Clubs. 
This invitation was extended to him by the State Vice-Presi- 
dent of the National Christian Temperance Union of Mich- 
igan, Mrs. Jane M. Geddes. This lady is the wife of the Hon. 
Norman Geddes of Adrian, Michigan, and occupies both a 
high social and public position in that State. Her name has 
become a part of temperance reform, and she is well known 
in the West as a philanthropist, and especially as an earnest 
advocate of total abstinence. 

She passed the summer of 1876 in travelling, but being 
attracted by the camp-meeting at Old Orchard Beach, she 
changed her route and went there. Here she met Dr. Rey- 
nolds and learned his mode of temperance reform. 

The intense excitement in her State caused by the crusade 

had died almost out ; and she felt something must be done to 

again bring the people to a due sense of their peril. The 

Woman's Christian Temperance Unions still lived, met and 

held prayer-meetings, but did very little good in rousing the 

masses. The people were surely drifting back into their old 

tate ; and it seemed impossible to stop it. The prohibitory 

aw had been repealed by parties opposed to temperance, and 

iquor selling had increased to frightful dimensions. The 

emperance advocates were scoffed at and ridiculed, and 

were very despondent under the disheartening turn affairs had 

taken. Mrs. Geddes felt Michigan was a ripe field for Dr. 

Reynolds, and urged him to go there, which he agreed to do, 

Immediately after the expiration of his engagements in other 

parts of the country. He could not for some time fix upon 

any certain date, and in consequence letter after letter came 

to him from Michigan begging him to come to appoint the 

time, so that the people might be duly informed of his advent. 

He finally said he would be there some time in the month of 

November. 

No monetary arrangements were made. Dr. Reynolds and 
his family were invited to make the home of Judge Geddes 
theirs ; and Mrs. Geddes agreed to find engagements for him at 



448 THE TPwTJE PATH ; 

different points of the State. The expenses of the movement f 
such as the renting of halls, printers' bills, travelling expenses' 
and the salary of the lecturer were entirely dependent upon L 
the liberality of the public. There were many disheartening* 
things in the doctor's way on hijs arrival at Adrian. Th e 
family of Judge Geddes was afflicted with scarlet fever ; th e 
temperance people were discouraged and despondent; ana r 
there was the great excitement over the election of the presi-)* 
dent. He felt like turning back, but he was determined tcr 
commence the siege any way now that he was on the ground 
There was no other place open but Adrian, and he had t 
begin at this point. His arrival had been somewhat sudden 
and there had been but a few days in which to announce pos 
itively that he would be there ; consequently there was n 
chance of a general system of regular appointments. 

The doctor had to rally out, and make his own arrangement^' 
for holding a meeting as best he could. He engaged a hall > 
and held a meeting which was slimly attended. The seconc l 
meeting was worse than the first. The state of affairs cerr 
tainly did not seem very promising. However a change came 3 
on Sunday afternoon. The men's meeting was conspicuous * 
for about three hundred persons, the majority of whom were 3 
positive drinkers if not drunkards. Very stirring and inter 
esting addresses were delivered by the doctor and some of the ' 
prominent clergymen of the place, which made considerable of 
an impression. Twenty-eight drinking men came forward [ 
that afternoon, and affixed their signatures to the doctor^ * 
pledge. The success of this meeting flashed over the town * 
and induced a large crowd of curiosity-seekers to attend the ' 
mass-meeting at the Opera House in the evening. The num- 
ber of pledge-signers was fifty-five ; on Monday it increased 
to fully eighty. All of these pledge-takers were mon 
or less men who were addicted to intoxicants. The interest 
and enthusiasm then grew, and in a very short while the Opera 
House was so crowded that it was found necessary to hold 
overflow meetings in the churches close by. The temperance I 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 449 

advocates became themselves again, and worked away with 
zeal and love. The prayer-meetings started by the crusaders 
were now very largely attended, and were soon the most in- 
teresting phase of Adrian life. Instead of weekly, daily meet- 
ings were held and crowds of eager people attended them 
regularly. Women who had taken active parts in the crusade, 
and who were zealous and effective temperance reformers, were 
called in from different points to help carry on the great and 
good work ; the anti-temperance people were alarmed and 
scoffed no more, but held their peace ; and the liquor-dealers 
looked on in mute fear and amazement. The doctor, the 
"red-ribbon man," was received every time he appeared in 
public in the warmest manner imaginable. He became a 
household word in Adrian, and the neighboring towns of 
Tecumseh, Hillsdale, Cold Water, and Monroe, were excited 
at the reports that came from Adrian of the doctor's great 
work and success. He was, therefore, cordially invited to visit 
them also, and organize reform clubs in their region. 

His method surprised and pleased every one. It was the first 
instance of the inebriate rising up in favor of temperance in 
Michigan, and consequently it was a source of considerable 
surprise and admiration. If the drunkard came forward of his 
own will, and became a strong advocate to total abstinence, 
every one should follow his good example. 

Dr. Reynolds went to Jackson, and on the following Sabbath 
held a meeting. The hall was literally packed, and he made a 
most favorable impression. The people were intensely enthu- 
siastic, and took the matter up in the right spirit. The work 
here never flagged for even a day, but grew all the more 
strong and more permanent with the flight of time. The 
Reform Club was a strong power ; and the secretary of it was 
a reclaimed man, notorious as one of the hardest drinkers in 
the place. He more than acceptably filled his honorable posi- 
tion. Jackson became known as " the temperance missionary 
center" of the State, for having sent out a number of re- 
formed men, who did excellent work in other fields. 



450 THE TKUE PATH ; 

Dr. Reynolds' advent in the Saginaw Valley was marked 
with very flattering success. He carried everything before 
him. East Saginaw had 600 signatures to his pledge, mostly 
hard-drinking men ; and Saginaw City fully 290. His success 
was so signal in this section alone that the entire State of 
Michigan was aroused to an intense pitch of excitement, and 
from that time the name of Henry A. Reynolds was upon 
everyone's lips. Everybody caught the intensity of feeling, 
the earnestness and enthusiasm that radiated from him ; and 
the temperence movement was pushed onward with glorious 
results. Michigan took him in, and accepted him in his true 
light — a hero, and one sent by God to rouse the fallen and 
the drunken to a fitting sense of their awful position and to 
save them for future lives of honor and usefulness. 

The next point of the doctor's labor was Detroit. The Rev. 
Dr. Eddy of this city was instrumental in bringing the reformer 
to this place. It was the reverend gentleman's fixed intention 
that the red-ribbon movement should commence here, and 
through Mrs. Geddes the arrangement was partially consum- 
mated. The doctor offered his services for a movement in 
Detroit ; but no one there appeared willing to accept them. 
A meeting of ministers had been called ; but nothing definite 
could be arrived at save that the movement would not be suc- 
cessful in Detroit as it was in other places. The expense that 
would necessarily attend it no one was ready to meet. The 
Young Men's Christian Association was unwilling to take it in 
hand. The only body in the city that stepped forward to help 
Dr. Reynolds was the Woman's Christian Temperance Union. 
This band of earnest and devoted Christian women were, how- 
ever, brave and zealous enough to inaugurate a dozen temper- 
ance movements. Entirely through them was the doctor 
enabled to labor in this city. 

The Opera House was engaged by them, at seventy-five 
dollars per diem. , They extensively advertised the doctor's 
coming and notified the public well of this new departure in 
temperance reform. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 451 

The first meeting was largely attended and the people were 
enthusiastic. A large number signed the pledge. The 
enthusiam grew more intense each day, and finally the whole 
city was alive to the work going on under Dr. Reynolds' 
direction. The Sunday afternoon meeting was an event in the 
annals of Detroit. Long before the appointed time there was 
an immense crowd waiting at the doors of the Opera House, 
and when they were flung open, and the people settled in their 
seats, the place was filled from pit to gallery. The applause 
that greeted the doctor that day was something long to be 
remembered. The excitement was great. Over five hundred 
men took the pledge, men addicted to strong drink for years. 
There were nine hundred signers in the evening, some of 
whom were gentlemen of high social and political standing. 
D. Bethune Duffield, a noted attorney-at-law, signed the pledge 
on this occasion. He was afterwards elected first president 
upon the organization of the Reform Club. The following 
citation from a communication to Our Union, a woman's 
temperance organ published in Brooklyn, N. Y., gives an in- 
teresting report of the method of the Reynolds meetings as 
illustrated in the Detroit work : 

" The meetings were held in the Detroit Opera House, which 
was crowded from the first. On the second afternoon a meet- 
ing composed entirely of men was held, and after telling his 
own history in his usual touching manner, Dr. Reynolds read 
the constitution of the ' Detroit Reform Club,' an organization 
which he declared should be separate and distinct from every 
other society or order in existence, composed only of men who 
had passed the age of eighteen, and who at some time during 
their lives had been more or less addicted to the use of 
intoxicating liquors. He then appealed to the audience to 
come forward and join the red-ribbon brigade, if not for 
themselves, for the good which their example might do to 
others. A most remarkable scene ensued. The vast audience 
rose to its feet and joined in singing hymns, while the aisles 
of the parquette were crowded with men pressing forward to 



452 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the orchestra circle, where the pledges were waiting for 
signatures, young and old, rich and poor, among them many 
who have heretofore been known as fast young men of the 
town. In order to facilitate matters a number of pledge-rolls 
were sent up into the galleries, and others were placed upon 
the stage and signed by large numbers who passed across in 
unbroken line from one wing to the other. Thus 547 names 
were obtained. 

"The first regular meeting of this club was held at Young 
Men's hall, Mr. Beecher having generously placed the rooms 
at the disposal of the knights of the red ribbon. Over a thou- 
sand names were by that time enrolled, a boy's Reform Club 
being also started. 

"A ladies' meeting was also held in the First Congregational 
Church, composed exclusively of ladies. The meeting was 
opened with prayer by Mr$. Dr. Stewart, and the singing of a 
hymn, after which addresses were made by Dr. Reynolds, 
Mrs. Lathrop, of Jackson, Mrs. Geddes, of Adrian, and a 
number of ladies belonging to the Women's Christiam Tem- 
perance Alliance of this city. When Dr. Reynolds finally left 
Detroit for Jackson, he was accompanied to the depot by a 
body of over 1,000 red ribbons. It should be mentioned that 
among those signing the pledge the last evening, was a saloon 
keeper on the corner of Michigan avenue and Second street, 
and those who go there this morning to get their daily drams,' 
will find the door locked and ornamented with a large red rib- 
bon. Dr. Reynolds remarked, after the adjournment, that he 
had never before accomplished so much for the cause of tem- 
perance in four days' work as he had during his brief stay in 
Detroit." 

The statement that "in the city of Detroit there were for- 
merly a hundred arrests a month for drunkenness, and the num- 
ber during the red-ribbon seige had diminished to nearly one- 
half that number," proves beyond all dispute what great 
results were brought about by Dr. Reynolds while there. 
During the four days he was there no arrests were made for 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 453 

drunkenness, and, according to the Free Press, nine days be * 
fore his advent there were sixty arrests for drunkenness and 
disturbing the peace, and for the nine days following it there 
were only eleven. 

A Red Ribbon Club was organized by the police force ; and 
these guardians of the public's peace are now to be seen going 
about with their piece of red ribbon next to their official badge. 

Up to date the Detroit Reform Club reports the goodly 
membership of three thousand seven hundred. This is the 
largest Reform Club in the country. 

Dr. and Mrs. Reynolds, the latter of whom is also an ardent 
worker in the temperance cause, held meetings for three days 
in Pontiac, and the result was a harvest of four hundred and 
thirty-eight. It now has over seven hundred members in its 
club. 

At Lansing Dr. Reynolds achieved no little success. He 
had here the assistance of Dr. Duffield, and Messrs. Crosby 
and Pruden. The place was very excited over the movement; 
and the work was interesting and almost inspired. Lansing 
never had been moved before as Dr. Reynolds moved it. The 
Reform Club had over a thousand drinking men enrolled as 
members, among whom were the members of the Lansing 
common council and a number of the members of the legis- 
lature. In a very short time it increased to twelve hundred. 
This fact is remarkable when we take into consideration that 
Lansing has only eighteen hundred and fifty voting voices. 

The Woman's Temperance Union here organized a " White 
Ribbon Club ;" the membership of which was four hundred 
and sixty-three. A knot of white ribbon is worn by the ladies 
on the right shoulder. 

The following speech, delivered by Dr. Reynolds at one of 
the Lansing meetings, will be perused with interest, as he 
clearly defines his position and work in the world : 

" I stand before this audience a reformed drunkard. I was 
born a drunkard, and I have suffered in every way that a man 
could suffer by strong drink. At thirty-six years old I was a 



454 THE TRUE PATH; 

drunkard and a pauper. I had earned thirty thousand dollars 
by my profession, and the whole of it had gone in sprees. I 
was the unhappiest man in the world : I wished for death, 
but I had not the courage to take my own life. I have drawn 
the charges from my pistol, burned my razors, and thrown 
poisons from my window lest I should use them for my death 
in some insane moment. 

" When the Woman's Crusade rose in the West, I cursed it. 
The great wave rolled to the East until it reached my native 
State. Women who had prayed in private, and had besought 
and agonized over a drunken husband, or son, or brother, 
driven to desperation, united their prayers in public for the 
lifting of the curse which was crushing them. Still I cursed 
them. I felt indignant enough to kill my own sister if she 
should join such a movement. But at last, as I was walking 
my office one day, on the verge of delirium tremens, I be- 
thought me in this last extremity to appeal to God. And then 
this poor, ragged, trembling wreck of humanity fell on his 
knees, and alone, in the presence of his Maker, poured out his 
soul, and raised a last despairing cry for that relief which God 
alone could give. 

"I rose up another man. I promised God that I would 
publicly renounce the thralldom of alcohol, and a few days 
afterward I went to the woman's meeting in my native city of 
Bangor, and publicly signed the pledge of total abstinence.. 
Then I went to work among my friends. But before I knew 
it I had kicked my practice overboard, and stood fully com- 
mitted to this work — the work of saving drunkards by the 
power of love. 

" The first red ribbon worn in Congress will go into tho 
House of Representatives on the coat of Edwin Willetts, of 
Monroe, Mich. 

" You want to know why we have a red ribbon ? Well, I 
will tell you. A few years ago a lot of good, big-hearted, 
whole-souled fellows, who had been in the habit of drinking, 
got together and resolved that they would rather wear a red 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEEAJNTCE. 455 

ribbon than a red nose. And they acted accordingly. The 
ribbon is tied in a hard knot, you see, for the reason that no 
man would like to go into a saloon and ask for a drink with 
that badge on ; and while he was stopping to untie it, the 
Lord would come in, and cast the devil of appetite out of him, 
and save him." 

At the meeting when the above " talk, " as the doctor calls 
his addresses — was delivered, an interesting episode occurred. 
A young lady whose escort was about to pass by on the other 
side, told him quietly yet firmly that he must sign the pledge 
or bid her good-night there and then. Seeing that she was 
really in earnest, he said, " Well, I'm in for it, so here goes ! " 
and he signed the pledge. He was more than repaid for what 
he had done by the smile she favored him with as he took her 
arm through his and they went on together. 

Good work was done, and flourishing Reform Clubs started 
by the doctor at Ypsilanti, Battle Creek, Benton Harbor and 
other points in the State. When much faith had been exer- 
cised and " patience had her perfect work, " light broke glori* 
ously in an immense meeting held in Bay City on the evening 
of January 21, 1877. Westover's Opera House was filled with 
a great throng and a Reform Club was organized, which enrolled 
two hundred and thirty-seven names at once. Dr. Rey- 
nolds went, the last four weeks of his work in Michigan, to the 
frontier settlements of the Upper Peninsula, and here met 
with his usual success. In the Lower Frontier the civilized 
Indians organized a club of their own at Indian Town, in 
Autumn county. They signed the pledge ; and were able to 
keep it, and were fully as enthusiastic as their white brothers. 

In Three Rivers there are one thousand members of the red- 
ribbon clubs, and three hundred of the white. At Albion 
almost all the population were carried by storm, and within 
two months four hundred and five signers have enrolled them- 
selves. In two days the town of Muir responded to the 
efforts of Dr. Reynolds by a club of eighty-five signers. Port 
Huron and Grand Rapids yielded to its influence, and organ- 



456 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ized a club of several hundreds each. Grand Haven in four 
days had four hundred and twenty-five signatures to the Rey- 
nolds pledge — the U. S. Senator Thomas W. Ferry being one 
of the signers. The Village of Mount Clemens, with but six- 
teen hundred inhabitants, at one meeting obtained over one 
hundred members to its club. The most prominent liquor 
dealer of the place was one of the first to sign the pledge. He 
poured all his liquor on the ground. In a single week this small 
place had two hundred and sixty-five names to the pledge. 

Kalamazoo has a Reform Club of a membership of seven 
hundred and seventy-eight. Flint sends in a report of over 
two hundred. Muskegon has fourteen hundred members in 
its Reform Club. 

These reports go far to show what a good and great work 
was done in Michigan by Dr. Reynolds : and they prove that 
the people of this State are fully awarfc of the dangers and 
pitfalls King Alcohol raises in their way, and are determined 
to vanquish him, no matter how long or how hard the fight 
may be. 

It is a strange fact that many were doubtful of the doctor's 
Success in Michigan ; not doubtful of him as a worker in the 
temperance cause, but as being able to induce the people to 
become temperate. There had been such a complete lull after 
the "crusade," that almost every one believed temperance 
■Would never become popular again, and in consequence of this 
feeling the doctor's reception in some cities was rather cold 
than warm. This, however, was soon changed by him into 
positive enthusiasm* Now, at Muskegon, the pastors of the 
several churches there, having been written to by the man- 
ager of the doctor's appointments offering him for a series of 
meetings in that town, answered that they deemed it advis- 
able for the doctor not to come to their city for awhile, as there 
were religious revivals going on at the time. The following 
correspondence later on took place : 

" Muskegon, January 18, 1877. 

"Mrs. J, M. Geddes — Dear Madam: You remember I 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 457 

wrote yon that, on account of revival work in this city, I did 

not know that arrangements had better be made to have Dr. 

Reynolds come here. This revival still continues. But I am 

inclined to think, judging by the favorable reports I hear, 

that if Dr. Reynolds should come it would not only incline 

many intemperate men to a better life, but also help in the 

glorious work of saving souls. Our city is cursed terribly 

with intemperance ; we have nearly ten thousand inhabitants, 

and saloons by the score.' 1 

After the doctor had left this place, the same pastor wrote 

as follows to Mrs. Geddes : 

« 

"Muskegon, Mawh 7, 1877. 

" Dr. Reynolds has been the humble instrument in the hands 
of God of a great deal of good in this city. The Christian 
people here had carefully prepared the way by preliminary 
work and earnest prayer. His first audience numbered nearly 
one thousand ; the Saturday evening meeting was larger than 
that of Friday evening. The meeting on Sunday afternoon 
was for men only, and was attended by nearly one thousand. 
Two hundred and fifty-five men joined the Reform Club that 
afternoon. In the evening a very large public meeting was 
held, and many more accessions were secured to the club. 

" Monday afternoon a meeting for women was held in the 
audience room of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Over 
three hundred ladies joined the Woman's Christian Temper- 
ance Union. On Monday evening another very large meeting, 
for men, was held in Union Hall. It was attended with great 
enthusiasm, the men sometimes being fairly wild with excite- 
ment, and breaking out into deafening cheers. The club was 
increased to more than five hundred and seventy. 

" This morning the Reform Club, led by a fine brass band, 
and attended by our city pastors, escorted Dr. Reynolds to 
the depot, and he departed for Big Rapids. His departure 
left, as results, a Reform Clnb, of six hundred and three men; 
a Woman's Christian Temperance Union, of three hundred 



458 THE TRUE PATH ; 

and sixty ladies : and one thousand signers to the total absti- 
nence pledge. 

" Yours truly, C. L. Barihiakdt, 

" Pastor M. K Church." ' 

So the glorious work rolled through the State from town to 
town with an enthusiasm that seemed infectious. The callous 
and indifferent were awakened into a new and earnest life, 
and the hard crust of what may be called hack-horse religion 
was broken up. New power was poured into the veins and 
arteries of all the social forces, which co-operate for good. 
Much of the success of the Reynolds movement is to be 
attributed to his natural, easy, informal manner as a speaker 
and processes as a worker. 

The methods of Dr. Reynolds were marked by the utmost 
simplicity. This delightful phase in his movement surprised 
and charmed everyone. He first organized a club of men who 
had been more or less addicted to the use of intoxicating 
drink, and who had attained the age of eighteen years ; he 
then appealed to the Christian women of the locality to throw 
about them the blessed shield of their love and sympathy, and 
finished his work of preparation by impressing upon the citi- 
zens at large the necessity of upholding the club with hearty 
and substantial assistance. 

" The meetings of the £lub are on a secular evening of each 
week," a good authority informs us; "and on Sunday after-, 
noons or evenings the clubs, with the Woman's Christan 
Temperance Unions, hold public meetings, which are always 
crowded. The order of exercises at these public meetings con- 
sists of prayer, reading of the scriptures, and brief addresses by 
reformed men, interspersed with singing gospel songs. As the 
clubs increase one by one, the leaders of the towns join the 
ranks, until now in scores of towns of Massachusetts, and sev- 
eral of the Western States, a public sentiment has been created 
which ostracizes the drinking man from good society. 

" The insignia of Dr. Reynolds is a piece of red ribbon, and 
any man wearing it is received wherever he chooses to go in 
a manner that clearly shows how the public regard it. It is a 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 459 

signal to which all good Christian people respond with deep 
interest and sympathy. 

" The motto, ' Dare to do Right,' is most appropriate, and 
has taken its place as a great favorite among the familiar sug- 
gestive expressions of the times." 

The pledge signed by each member, and the constitution 
and by-laws adopted by reform clubs, as inaugurated by Dr. 
Reynolds and his earnest co-workers, are as follows : 

Whereas, Having seen and felt the evils of intemperance, 
therefore, 

JResolved, That we, the undersigned; for our own good and 
the good of the world in which we live, do hereby promise 
and engage with the help of Almighty God, to abstain from 
buying, selling or using alcoholic or malt beverages, wine and 
cider included. And that we shall accomplish the greatest 
possible amount of good, and work most effectually, we 
hereby adopt for our government the following constitution 
and by-laws : 

ARTICLE I. 

This organization shall be called and known as the — — 
Reform Club. 

article II. 

It shall be the duty of each member of the Club to work in 
the interests of the same by inducing all those who are ad- 
dicted to the use of intoxicating drinks to sign our pledge and 
become faithful members of the Club. 

ARTICLE III. 

All male persons of the age of eighteen years and upwards, 
who have been in the habit of using intoxicating liquor to a 
greater or less extent, are eligible to membership in this Club. 

ARTICLE IV. 

The officers of this Club shall consist of a President, three 
Vice-Presidents, Secretary, Financial Secretary, Treasurer, one 
Steward, two Marshals, one Sergeant-at-Arms, Executive Com* 
mittee of five, and Finance Committee of three. 



460 T3E TEUE PATH ; 

The Executive and Finance Committees shall be appointed 
by the President and approved by the Club. 

aeticle v. 

It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meet- 
ings of the Club, to preserve order, enforce the constitution 
and by-laws of the Club, see that the officers perform their 
respective duties, sign all documents issued by the Club, call 
special meetings when it is deemed expedient, or, upon tho 
written request of twelve or more of the members of the Club, 
cause the Secretary to notify the members of such meetings, 
and approve all bills. 

ARTICLE VI. 

In the absence of the President the senior Vice-President 
shall preside, and while in the chair shall exercise all the 
powers of the President. 

AETICLE VII. 

It shall be the duty of the Secretary to keep a correct record 
of the proceedings of the Club, notify members of special 
meetings, attest all bills approved by the President and Ex- 
ecutive and Finance Committees, conduct the correspondence, 
make a report of the doings of the Club during his term of 
office, and at the end of the year hand over all books, papers, 
and other property to his successor in office. 

He will call the roll of officers at all business meetings, and 
keep a record of absentees. 

ARTICLE VIII. 

It shall be the duty of the Financial Secretary to keep a just 
and true account between himself and the Club, and between 
the Club and its members ; to receive all moneys from the 
hands of the brethren, and at the close of each meeting pay 
the same to the Treasurer, taking his receipt therefor. He 
shall, when called upon by the President, furnish a statement 
of accounts and a list of all members in arrears for dues 

ARTICLE IX. 

It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to receive all moneys 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 461 

from the hands of the Financial Secretary, keep a just and 
true account of the same, and pay it out only on an order 
authorized by a vote of the Club, signed by the President and 
Secretary, and approved of by the Finance Committee. He 
shall also, before taking office, give bonds that shall be satis- 
factory to the President and Finance Committee, in a sum 
that shall not be less than two hundred dollars, or such other 
larger amount which shall be satisfactory to the President and 
Finance Committee, prepare and present at the annual and 
quarterly meetings (or oftener, if required) a true statement 
of the financial condition of the Club, and of all moneys re- 
ceived and disbursed by him, and at the expiration of his 
term of office hand over all books, papers, and other property 
in his possession to his successor in office. 

ARTICLE X. 

It shall be the duty of the Executive Committee to have a 
general oversight of the affairs of the Club, examine and re- 
port all violations of the pledge, investigate and report quar- 
terly the progress of the Club. 

ARTICLE XI. 

It shall be the duty of the Finance Committee to examine 
and report on all bills brought before them, audit the accounts 
of the Financial Secretary and Treasurer, and make a report 
of the same to the Club at least once a quarter, or when other- 
wise called upon to do so. 

ARTICLE XII. 

It shall be the duty of the Marshals to take charge of all 
public prosecutions. 

ARTICLE XIII. 

It shall be the duty of the Steward to have charge of the 
property of the Club not under the control of any of its 
officers. 

ARTICLE XIV. 

It shall be the duty of the Sergeant-at-Arms to take charge 
of the door of the Club-room, and assist the President in pre- 
serving order during all meetings of the Club. 



462 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ARTICLE XV. 

Fifteen members in good standing shall constitute a quorum 
for the transaction of business. 

ARTICLE XVI. 

Any person who is eligible to membership in this Order 
shall, upon signing this constitution, become a member thereof; 
but should an objection be raised in any case, the President 
shall immediately, without discussion, order a ballot. 

The affirmative vote of two-thirds of all the members pres- 
ent shall be necessary to elect the candidate. 

ARTICLE XVII. 

All meetings of this Club shall be conducted free from all 
political or sectarian discussions. 

ARTICLE XVIII. 

The officers of this Club shall be elected on the last Wednes- 
day in December, by ballot, and installed the first Wednesday 
in January in each year ; but should either of these days fall 
upon a holiday, then the election and installation shall take 
place on the Wednesday next following 

ARTICLE XIX. 

Any member of this Club who shall violate his pledge 
thereby forfeits his membership, but may again become a. 
member by acknowledging the same, and paying the sum of 
twenty-five cents, as in the case of new members, and signing* 
the constitution anew. 

ARTICLE xx. 

It shall be the duty of the President, upon receiving 
reliable information of a member having violated his pledge, 
to report the same to the Executive Committee, who shall in- 
vestigate the case, and report the same to the Club at the 
next meeting. 

ARTICLE XXI. 

All reports of committees shall be made in writing, and 
signed by such members as indorse the sentiments contained 
therein. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE, 463 

ARTICLE XXII. 

Any officer absenting himself from four regular meetings, 
"without good and sufficient reason, his seat shall be declared 
vacant, and an election by ballot shall be held the same even- 
ing to fill the vacancy. 

ARTICLE XXIII. 

All official documents issued for the Club shall be signed by 
the President and Secretary. 

ARTICLE XXIV. 

Members whose names have been stricken from the books 
for non-payment of dues may again renew their membership 
by paying all back dues during such time, and signing the 
constitution anew. 

ARTICLE XXV. 

Any officer wishing to resign his office shall give the Club 
at least one week's notice before his resignation can be acted 
upon. 

ARTICLE XXVI. 

Any member in good standing who may wish to withdraw 
from the Club shall, upon a vote from the Club in the affirm- 
ative, be entitled to an honorable discharge. 

ARTICLE XXVH. 

This constitution may be altered or amended at any regular 
or special meeting of the Club, provided such alteration or 
amendment shall have been submitted in writing at the pre- 
vious regular meeting. 

ORDER OF BUSINESS. 

1. Opening. 

2. Roll call of officers. 

3. Reading of the minutes. 

4. Applications for membership, 

5. Communications. 

6. Reports of committees, 
1. Unfinished business, 

8. New business. 



464 THE TRUE PATH ; 

9. Has any brother violated his pledge ? 

10. Remarks for the good of the Club. 

11. Receipts of the evening. 

12. Adjournment. 

BY-LAWS. 

ARTICLE I. 

The meetings of this Club shall be held every Wednesday 
evening at seven and one-half o'clock, until otherwise ordered, 
and the public meetings shall be held at such time and place 
as the Club may decide. 

ARTICLE II. 

On the first Wednesday in each month the regular meet- 
ings of the Club will be held, at which members will pay their 
monthly assessments, the Financial Secretary calling the roll, 
and members paying as their names are called. This will 
not prevent any member from paying at business meetings. 
Each and * every member shall pay the sum of twenty-five 
cents monthly. 

ARTICLE III. 

Any member one month in arrears for dues will be notified 
by the Financial Secretary, and if his dues remain unpaid for 
four weeks after said notification, without good and sufficient 
reason being given for the non-payment thereof, he shall, 
upon the two-thirds vote of all members present, be suspended. 

ARTICLE IV. 

The following questions shall not be debatable : 1st. A mo- 
tion to adjourn, when to adjourn simply. 2d. A motion to lay 
on the table. 3d. A motion for the previous question. 4th. 
A motion to take up a particular item of business. 

ARTICLE v. 

No member shall speak more than twice on one subject, 
unless he be the mover or seconder, unless by permission of the 
President. 

ARTICLE VT. 

No member shall be allowed to use any personal language 



OR, GOSPEL TE?,IPET^AIsrCE. 465 



toward another, and any member indulging in personal- 
ities shall be deemed out of order, and if persisted in after 
being called to order, shall be deprived of the privilege 
of membership for that evening. Any member using insult- 
ing or indecent language in connection with the officers and 
members of this Club may, upon a two-thirds vote of the mem- 
bers present at any meeting, be expelled from said Club. 

ARTICLE VII. 

Should it be deemed necessary to take up a collection to de- 
fray expenses at any public meeting, it shall be done by a 
committee appointed by the President, and they will hand the 
amount over to the Financial Secretary, or, in his absence, to 
the Secretary, who shall pay it over to the Treasurer, taking 
his receipt for the same. 

ARTICLE VIII. 

These by-laws may be amended or suspended at any regu- 
lar meeting by a two-thirds vote of all members present. 

Before entering further into a history of the Reynolds tem- 
perance movement, which, after it left Massachusetts and the 
East, was to assume its most striking aspects as a matter of 
public interest, in Illinois and Michigan, a few words will be 
necessary to give a clue to the modus operandi of his work as 
compared with that of the other great temperance wave, that 
of Francis Murphy. The latter advocate of reform has pur- 
sued his plans by the effect of magnetic sympathy and arator- 
ical effect in groat mass meetings ; utilizing in connection 
therewith the peculiar and intense dramatic appeal of speeches, 
from the platform, of those w T ho had been converted by the 
influence of his addresses. This use of one of the powerful 
factors in the discipline of the Methodist church organization, 
an influence of its kind hardly less stringent than that of the 
Romish Confessional in its force in swaying human motive 
and action, has been alluded to before. It has emphasized 
itself as one of the most marked features of the Murphy 
movement, judged as a system of influences brought to bea* 



466 THE TRUE PATH ; 

on the popular mind. On the other hand, while Dr. Rey- 
nolds has not ignored this phase of effort, it has been an inci- 
dental feature in the method of his work. 

The Reynolds movement may be summed up briefly as a 
system of reform clubs, organized with special reference to 
the results to be attained. The Murphy work has been done 
in connection with vast assemblies, newspaper celebrity, and 
that passionate ferment of all classes from the scholar, the 
clergyman, the doctor, the lawyer — in a word, the man of 
social distinction — down to the humble laborer, who toils with 
his hands for his daily bread. The Reynolds work has been 
pursued more quietly, and as a consequence, however stable 
and powerful in its effects, has not attained the same popular 
excitement. A marked characteristic of Dr. Reynolds' pecu- 
liar labors is the direct outcome of the circumstances of his 
own reform as an individual, and he has since made it a most 
telling agency in carrying out his grand work. We refer to 
that great power in society, which for the good and evil has 
moulded the minds of men so organically from the earliest 
days to the present time, the power of woman. Dr. Reynolds 
was drifted by circumstance into connection with a woman's 
temperance organization, when he first took the pledge. Both 
gratitude and policy, we may assume, have caused him to 
make the influence of woman a permanent and characteristic 
element of his work. The woman's crusade was one of the 
most extraordinary and significant facts in the history of 
American temperance. It may in fact be cited as an unpar- 
alleled outburst in the social phenomena of reform. Dr. 
Reynolds' alliance with this agency has become so direct, that 
we are impelled to enlarge somewhat on the phases of the 
women's temperance work for several years back, though 
we can only speak of it in general terms. Emphatically we 
may assert that it is utterly impossible to give even the 
slightest conception of the work and the methods of Dr. Henry 
A. Reynolds without describing the Women's Temperance 
Uniona, or, we should say, the immortal " Crusade," as the two 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERAKCE. 467 

great movements go together hand in hand, and are identified 
with one another. 

The flash of light that helped to arouse thousands to the fright- 
ful evils of intemperance and the blessed results of total absti- 
nence, rayed out from the town of Hillsboro, Ohio, in 1873. 
Dr. Dio Lewis, in a lecture at this place, related in a most 
effective manner how, forty years before, his pious mother, 
the wife of a wretched drunkard, who was struggling to feed, 
clothe and educate her young and helpless family, went with a 
band of devoted women who had a similar sorrow, to the differ- 
ent tavern-keepers, and kneeling down in each bar-room, prayed 
with and for the proprietors, and besought them to abandon a 
business that was cursing their neighbors and bringing want 
and suffering into many once happy homes. These efforts 
were crowned with success. After narrating this pathetic 
story of his mother, the noted lecturer asked all the women 
present, who were willing to follow her example, to rise, and 
in response nearly the entire audience sprang to their feet. 
From that evening was born the crusade. Meetings were 
held, and the women, strengthened by long and earnest 
prayer, commenced their work. They went to the druggists 
where wine was sold to genteel customers, and to saloons, and 
prayed and sang gospel songs out on the cold pavements, some- 
times in blinding storms, for it was in the winter season. 

To rescue their beloved husbands, fathers and sons, from 
the maddening cup, these women, who knew the refinement 
and luxury of elegant homes, and the culture of study and 
travel, bravely faced the wrath of infuriated mobs. An ex- 
cellent authority has truly and aptly remarked that "the 
record of those days and months will never be fully read this 
side eternity." 

It was soon evident that the gigantic work they had under- 
taken would consume the labor of years ; and that some other 
plan, equally efficient, must be adopted. 

In the spring of 1874, conventions were called in various 
States by these brave women, the results of which were State 



468 THE TKTJE PATH ; 

organizations for future work. A grand national convention 
was held in Cleveland, Ohio, in November, 1874, for the pur- 
pose of uniting and combining State bodies. From that time 
the work steadily progressed, and was very successful. There 
are up to date twenty-two States organized auxiliary to the 
national body, and almost numberless local unions in every 
State in the Union, except the extreme south, and the territo- 
ries of the far west. An International Union was formed in 
1876, our "centennial year," and now the women of Europe 
are working away with the same will and power characteristic 
of their American sisters. 

The only sure safety for the seller and drinker of intoxicat- 
ing drinks was faith in the Lord Jesus. The crusaders recog- 
nized this most emphatic fact from the very outset, and acted 
upon it accordingly. Gospel temperance meetings were in- 
augurated in every part of this vast country, and the men and 
women, to whom religion was long an unknown and ridiculous 
spectacle, unworthy their slightest attention, flocked in im- 
mense crowds to them like thirsty souls. 

Twenty meetings were held weekly in Cleveland ; in Brook- 
lyn the same number ; in Chicago fourteen ; in New York city 
nine ; and in Newark eight. Every local union has a weekly 
prayer-meeting, and many of them have public, temperance 
services on Sabbath afternoons, sometimes in churches, some- 
times in public halls or beer gardens ; mothers' meetings^ 
where the poor come with their children, and have a simple 
supper after the exercises ; meetings in prisons and in jail, 
whither nine-tenths are brought through drink alone ; Bible 
classes of reformed men ; cottage prayer-meetings, especially 
in the houses of the dissipated ; among sailors, who are par- 
ticularly subject to temptation ; in inebriate and Magdalen 
asylums, hospitals and bethel homes. Our authority says, 
" over two hundred such meetings are held by women in the 
city of New York, in mission and charitable institutions. In 
several cities, as in Chicago, Brooklyn, New York and Cleve- 
land, a daily temperance prayer-meeting has been sustained 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPEKAXCE. 469 

since the beginning of the crusade. All these meetings mean 
time, labor and consecration. Who shall say that the work 
has ceased ?" 

One of the most successful agents employed to elevate and 
educate the people is the work of petition. In this way while 
influence had been brought to bear upon the legislature, tem- 
perance conversations were held in tens of thousands of homes. 
Indiana sent a petition with 23,000 signatures, praying for a 
voice in the local-option election, and helped to circulate a 
general petition which had the large number of 75,000 names. 
The women of Rhode Island seenred the signatures of 10,000 
women to a petition for the suppression of the traffic, and car- 
ried it before the legislature. Their prayer was granted ; 
but the law was repealed when the new officers were elected. 
Massachusetts women sent a petition to Congress having 
22,000 names, and one for the repeal of the new license law, 
having 10,000. The women of Ohio kept the politicians con- 
stantly agitated by their petitioning. A monster petition 
w^ith hundreds of thousands of names, from all the states, was 
carried by a delegation of women to Congress, asking for a 
commission of inquiry in regard to the liquor traffic. 

The greater number of the men who attended the gospel 
meetings had no homes, no cheery place to pass an evening 
except in a saloon, or no where to board except where a bar 
offered constant and usually successful temptation. Friendly 
inns, consisting of a reading-room, dining-room and sleeping 
apartments, were established in nearly all the leading cities. 
Cleveland had live ; Rochester two ; Syracuse one ; where 
over GOO men renounced their cups ; Buffalo one, where 200 
signed the pledge in a very short time ; and scores more in 
other towns. Massachusetts had twenty-six reading-rooms ; 
Iowa twenty-two ; Ohio twelve ; Illinois eight ; Pennsylvania 
five ; Wisconsin and Michigan a very large number, and 
nearly all of the other States several in each. 

The women strove to reach the next generation through 
the children and their auxiliary juvenile societies in Manches- 



470 THE TRUE PATH ; 

ter, N. H., Syracuse, Pittsburgh, New York, Brooklyn, Massa- 
chusetts, Minnesota, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. In Ore- 
gon and Tennessee, the women train the little children for the 
good fight. It was deemed advisable that a temperance liter- 
ature should be provided for the youthful mind ; and the idea 
was formed and carried out with no little success. The chil- 
dren were taught to sing temperance songs, and to recite from 
wisely prepared catechisms. 

The young women of the country brought their valuable 
aid in taking charge of juvenile societies, holding day and 
night schools, and sewing-schools for girls ; assisting inebriate 
families, and so formed public opinion, as to make it unpopu- 
lar and even disgraceful for young men to imbibe. 

It was also attempted to form a society in all seminaries and 
colleges for young women, because the latter, as they go out 
from school, would become centers of influence. 

This plan met with general favor. The cause and its earn- 
est advocates had a day and sometimes a couple of days 
given them at the great summer gathering, as Old Orchard 
Beach, Chatauqua Lake, and other places. Medical bodies 
were invited to give their views on the uses of alcohol. They 
always sided with the temperance advocates. The laity came 
forward en masse and took the cause by the hand, and worked 
nobly for it from the very beginning. 

The officers of the National Union gave up everything to 
further the good work, travelling at any time and to any dis- 
tance to hold and conduct temperance meetings and conven- 
tions. But, of course, the great work was done by the almost 
numberless focal " Women's Temperance Unions," scattered 
throughout the different States ; silently and unostentatiously 
toiling like the coral insects under the surface of the foam- 
ing sea, and building the deep foundations on which smiling 
islands and continents are anchored fast. 

Dr. Reynolds instantly puts himself into harness with the 
" Women's Temperance Union," and the two co-operate with 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEEA1STCE. 471 

the most surprising results, as the statistics we shall by-and-by 
collate will suggest. 

This bond of alliance is furthermore expressed by the badge 
of the white ribbon, worn by women and children, otherwise 
the same as the red-ribbon token born by the members of the 
reform clubs, directly organized by Dr. Reynolds. The potency 
of the social influence thus put into operation, can hardly be 
measured by one who has not directly watched its workings. 
These earnest, praying women give their dissipated husbands, 
fathers, sons, sweet-hearts or friends, no peace till they consent 
to go and hear one of Reynolds' talks, and submit themselves 
to his influence. 

So deeply stamped on the heart of the Michigan people has 
been their recognition of the value of the Reynolds' work, 
that it was publicly indorsed and approved by the legislature. 
Representative R. B. Robbins, of Lenawee coiinty, offered the 
following concurrent resolution in the house of representatives, 
by unanimous consent, which was adopted by both houses, 
without a dissenting vote, handsomely engrossed, signed by 
the presiding officers of both houses and the governor, the 
State seal affixed, and the whole handsome and valuable testi- 
monial presented to Dr. Reynolds : 

Resolved (the Senate concurring), That, in the recent work 
introduced into this State by Dr. Henry A. Reynolds, we 
recognize a reform so beneficent in its aims, and so wise in its 
measures, as to have won public confidence in an unprecedented 
degree, — not only achieving marvellous results in its effects 
upon individuals, families and communities, but promising to 
be so far-reaching in its influence as of necessity to greatly 
diminish poverty and crime, the expenses of almshouses, police 
courts and prisons, as well as the demands upon private and 
public charity ; and promising also to solve the much-vexed 
problem of tramps, vagrants, paupers and convicts — striking, 
as it does, at the root of pauperism and crime. 

Resolved, that to Dr. Henry A. Reynolds, the originator 



472 THE TEUE PATH ; 

and prosecutor of this reform, as developed in this State, we 
tender grateful appreciation and thanks. 

Approved May 3, 1877. 

Charles M. Croswell. 

Alonzo Sessions, 

[Seal.] President of the Senate. 

John T. Rich, 
Speaker of the Souse of Representatives. 

A well known gentleman writing to a leading paper, in 
speaking of Reynolds, says : " I feel safe in saying that in the 
whole histoiy of our State (Michigan) no one man ever did so 
much for the moral, social (and I think I might add, material) 
interests of the State." Who ever before heard of a legisla- 
ture commending a temperance loorker ? 

In local meetings, in camp-meetings and conventions, the 
enthusiasm has grown and spread, and the contagion of the 
influence has run like wild-fire. Even in the backwoods and 
the wilds of the State the grand wave has rolled, and left its 
marks. Some of the incidents that have occurred are very 
well worth recording, and one of these we give. Towards the 
close of the late camp-meeting at Petoskey, Michigan, a very 
interesting episode took place. The evening was one of those 
beautiful evenings that make one quiet and speechless with 
their great beauty. Sailing through the clouds was the 
harvest moon ; and the long rays of silver light glistened 
through the thick trees, and lit up the inspired face of a lady, 
who had given her entire time and talents to the temperance 
work, and who, at this moment, was entreating all to come 
forward and allow her to tie on the red ribbon. The very air 
seemed tremulous with the prayers of the crowd assembled 
there to worship, and the eye of God seemed to be regarding 
the scene. While the lady was entreating the people to take the 
pledge, an old Indian chief was led forward gently by two of 
his tribe. With the well-known majesty of his race he ap- 
proached, and said in the low, singing tones peculiar to his 
people : " I am Petoskey, chief of the Indian people. I want 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEEANCE. 473 

to take the pledge from the white lady, and let her fingers tie 
the red ribbon on old Petoskey's coat." How the lady's lovely 
face brightened and glowed at that ! She stepped down from 
the platform and went to him. " My dear brother," she said, 
in a voice very suggestive of joyful tears; "faraway from 
the blue Atlantic I have come from my home, in the green 
Emerald Isle, where all I love lies sleeping, to take you by the 
hand and call you, chief of the Indian tribe, my brother. I 
welcome you as you clasp hands with us, workers in this 
sacred cause of temperance, a cause which means not alone 
patriotism, nationality, but, blessed be God, it means religion. 
I shall go on my way stronger as I remember up here in the 
wilds of Northern Michigan our numbers are strengthened by 
Petoskey's signature." 

" I'll meet you beyond that sky there, and shall need no more 
moon or sun, for He will be the light thereof." And with 
that the dignified old chief retired as he came. 

The following resolutions were passed by the State Con- 
gregational Association, which closed its session at Ann Arbor, 
on May 18, 1877. Rav. Ira C. Billman, chairman of the com- 
mittee on temperance, offered the following report and 
resolutions, which were adopted : 

" Whereas, The cause of temperance, one of the most 
practical workings of Christianity, embracing many of the 
dearest interests of humanity, social and religious, has received 
a great and far-reaching impetus in our State within the last 
few months, especially under the forms of what are popularly 
known as the red-ribbon movement, the Woman's Temper- 
ance Union, and the Children's Band. 

" Resolved, That we have devout cause of thanksgiving to 
God and encouragement for still more untiring devotion to 
this arm of the Master's service, and that as ministers and 
churches, we lend our influence to promote their utilization. 

"Resolved, That especial mention be made of Dr. PI. A. 
Reynolds, who has been confessedly, under God, the efficieut 
instrument in this great work, and we recommend him, from 



474 THE TRUE PATH ; 

personal knowledge, to the confidence of all to whom this 
may reach. We also express, in this connection, our apprecia- 
tion of the services of Mrs. Norman Geddes, of Plymouth 
Society, Adrian, through whose efforts he was secured at first, 
and who has by continued inspiring assistance, planned and 
encouraged the great campaign." 

The following letter to the Rev. W. H. Daniels, A. M., will 
be perused with general satisfaction as it graphically tells the 
story of the first Juvenile Reform Club in Michigan : — 

"Adrian, December 18, 1877. 

"Dear Sir: — I belong to the Reform Club of Adrian, and I 
thought that my little boy, nine years, might be benefited by 
attending the meetings with me. When the pledge was read 
he came to me, and asked if he couldn't sign. I told him no ; 
he was not old enough yet ; that he must be eighteen years 
old before he could become a member of the society. He 
replied that nine years was along time to wait : and I thought 
it w^as, with all the influences that tend to draw our boys from 
virtue and from God. Nine years hence he might be any- 
thing but a fit subject for a temperance society. It troubled 
me, and I told him that I would write him out a pledge, and 
he and his little sister and play -fellows could sign it, and have 
a little society of their own, which pleased him very much. 

" Thanksgiving morning I wrote this pledge : — 

" ' We promise that we will not use any cider, wine, beer, ale, 
or other intoxicating liquor. 

" * We promise that we will neither smoke, chew, nor use 
tobacco in any form.' 

" He wrote his name, Charley T. Boyd, on the pledge, and 
said he would have his play-fellows come and sign. Shortly 
six or eight came in with him, and, after reading the pledge 
carefully to them, they put their names to it. I gave them a 
red ribbon for not drinking, and a blue one for not smoking 
or chewing, and tied the badges in their button-holes. 
These few went out after more, and they kept me busy almosl 
the whole of Thanksgiving day, and at night I had on the rol 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERAKCE. 4?5 



about five hundred boys who wore the badge, and dared to do 
right. 

" The fathers and mothers became interested in the work, 
and gave the boys a grand reception, in the Opera House, 
where over five hundred boys marched, with drums and ban- 
ners and flags, to such a table as they had never before seen. 
The musicians gave the boys a short concert, we had a little 
speaking and then supper. 

" I have had the pledge always open for signers here in the 
city, and have visited and helped to organize, in almost every 
town in the county, clubs of both old and young persons, to 
the number of over fourteen hundred boys and girls, and hun- 
dreds of men and women. It is a good work to lift degraded 
ones out of the ditch, and help them to be sober men and 
women ; but I love to take these pure children, and lead them 
up into manhood without the sufferings which the drunkard 
undergoes — for in the children is our country's hope. 

" I remain, sir, respectfully yours, 

" R. W. Boyd." 

Such was the grand work of the temperance reformer in 
Michigan : a work which ranks for solid fruits with, perhaps, 
any in the history of the movement: There were formed in the 
State under the direction of Dr. Reynolds two hundred lodges, 
with a membership of 100,000. There were at least 200,000 
all told, as nearly as we can judge by the statistics, who were 
influenced to forsake the evil habit of drinking and put them- 
selves on the side of right and true manhood. The influence 
of Dr. Reynolds proved a sure, strong anchor, for it trans- 
formed his converts into an army of workers, who not only 
deepened and solidified their own reformation, but won over 
others to the good cause both by the force of precept and ex- 
ample. God's blessing rested on the efforts of the earnest mis- 
sionary, and his harvest was such as delighted and encouraged 
the hearts of all that loved God and humanity. 



476 THE TKUE PATH 



CHAPTER XXIV.. 

THE TEMPERANCE WORK OF DR. REYNOLDS IS CONTINUED IN 

ILLINOIS. HIS EFFORTS IN THAT STATE. THE CHICAGO 

REVIVAL. FACTS, SPEECHES, AND CHARACTERISTICS OF THE 

REYNOLDS MOVEMENT IN THE PRAIRIE CITY. CONCLUSION. 

In the middle of July, 1877, Dr. Reynolds conducted a tem- 
perance camp-meeting on the grounds of the Lake Bluff Asso- 
ciation of Illinois, at which were gathered many of the most 
prominent temperance laborers of both sexes from various 
parts of the United States and Canada. Michigan sent in a 
roll-call of 80,000, who had actually signed the pledge, as red- 
ribbon men. And there were about 200,000 men, women and 
children beside, who were stated to have become pledge-takers 
under the influence of the earnest reformer. 

At this gathering there were such prominent and well-known 
people as Francis Murphy ; Rev. Dr. Foster of Fredericton, 
New Brunswick ; John Warburton ; Miss Francis E. Wil- 
lard ; Mrs. Lathrop of Jackson, Mich. ; Mrs. S. J. Rounds of 
Chicago, secretary of the Temperance Union ; Mrs. Youmans 
from Ontario ; Mrs. Jennie F. Willing ; and Mrs. McGowan, 
the chaplain of the Cook county jail of Illinois, where she had 
done a great work among the prisoners. 

At this camp-meeting Dr. Reynolds delivered his views on 
the Maine Liquor Law with considerable effect. He was asked 
by some one present if this law was enforced, and in a very 
forcible manner the doctor rejoined : 

"Yes, sir. A man who sells rum in any form is there 
deemed as disreputable as a horse-thief, even if he does wear 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 4V9 



diamonds on his shirt-front, or drive around in a gilded car- 
riage. Public opinion in favor of cold water has been so 
strengthened that the election resulted in filling up the legis- 
lature last winter with teetotalers, all except ten, and now wine 
and cider have been added to the prohibited drinks. The law 
is a grand success, and all statements to the contrary are worse 
than nonsense. Still, this law business is not my best hold. 
Till you can reform public opinion, and get men to hate rum, 
it is of no use to try to get prohibitory laws passed. As long 
as at the polls ballots are cast by men who enjoy their morn- 
ing cocktails and their evening night-caps we can't have any 
great temperance reform by law. 

" When public feeling sends strong temperance men up to 
the legislative houses, then temperance laws will be enforced 
to the letter." 

The proposed " tapering off" of the appetite for strong 
drink by the use of lager-beer, light wines, and other bever- 
ages of a lighter character received on this occasion a sharp 
blow from the clever physician which must have effectually 
killed it. He said : 

" It is with these drinks, in my opinion, that drunkenness 
commences. Men do not begin with fiery, throat-burning 
whisky, but with cider, ale, and beer. Beer is leading men to 
the drunkard's gave. It takes longer for a man to get drunk 
on beer than on rum, but it is a worse sort of drunk when it 
does come. I know by experience. I have been drunk on 
every kind of intoxicant that was ever mixed." 

At this meeting it was arranged that Dr. Reynolds, after 
completing his Michigan labors, should go to Illinois and com- 
mence the red-ribbon reform in that State. Pursuant to his 
steady plan of laboring in connection with the Women's Tem- 
perance Unions. Dr. Reynolds commenced his work at Cairo, 
the extreme southern point of the State, his appointments hav- 
ing been made for him by Mrs. S. M. J. Henry of Rockford, a 
prominent and enthusiastic laborer in the reform cause. His 
efforts in that thriving little city, were blessed with their usual 



480 THE TKUE PATH ; 

success, and Cairo was thrown into a ferment of the greatest 
excitement. Rum-shops were closed up, liquor-sellers induced 
to sign the pledge, and a deep root of truth and good planted 
in the heart of the community. Two red-ribbon clubs were 
formed with a combined membership of nearly 800 members. 
The churches, of course, took hold of the movement with their 
usual earnestness, and every religious influence was brought to 
bear to advance the labors of the devoted doctor. Cairo, from its 
peculiar position as the junction point of two great rivers, and 
its character as a rendezvous of the numerous boatmen, pro- 
verbially a hard-drinking class, had been from its early settle- 
ment an unusually dissipated and "hard" city. The effects 
of the Reynolds movement there were such as to establish a 
new order of things, and to furnish reasonable grounds that 
the floating population of this important river city, would 
henceforth be of a different character, and subjected to a more 
pure and blessed atmosphere than of old. The wave extended 
over the State northwards, carried by Reynolds and his fellow- 
workers, recruited from the men and women who had recently 
signed the pledge, and found its next great center in the city 
of Rockf ord in the western part of the State. 

Rockford again was a field of brilliant triumph, and after 
Reynolds' labors were finished in the beautiful little capital of 
the Fox river region, he proceeded to Chicago, where he 
opened his labors under the most favorable auspices, churches 
and the public at large welcoming him with the utmost warmth 
and enthusiasm, for aside from sympathy with the objects of the 
work, there was the most lively curiosity to see the man who 
had wrought such marvellous things by such simple means. 

The Halsted street Opera House was crowded to hear Dr. 
Reynolds, the first time he stood before a Chicago audience. 
His fame and his great work had gone before him, and an 
immense concourse of curious people filled the Opera House 
to hear and see what manner of man he was. 

The hall was decorated with evergreens and national flags. 
Several gospel songs were rendered, and then Mrs. Cumming 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 481 

opened the more solid services with a touching and appropri- 
ate prayer, after which the doctor was introduced. The aud- 
ience gave him a very cordial greeting. He began by saying 
he wished his audience to understand that he did not come 
among them as a temperance lecturer; that he did not come 
before them to act the drunkard and to tell amusing anecdotes. 
He came as a plain man to tell them a plain story. He would 
tell them what his plan of work was in saving men from the 
curse of the cup. He had to say of himself that he spoke of 
what he knew. He had himself once been a victim. He had 
tasted of the cup, not once, but often. His plan was one which 
could take in all sinners, no matter what denomination they 
might belong to. He did not believe, as did the minister who, 
when walking past a Catholic graveyard, and while pointing to 
the graves therein, said, " Every one of those graves represents 
a soul suffering the torments of hell." He believed that the 
members of all religions had a right to be saved from the 
terrible curse of strong drink. That was the object of his plan 
of reformation. He would include all persons in his system. 
His plan was to induce " all " to sign a pledge by which they 
should forswear the use, in any form, of alcoholic liquors, 
wines, malt liquors, and cider — cider in any form. He wished 
to speak especially against the use of cider, either by the 
young or grown person. Cider was the devil's kindling wood. 
He, himself, had first been drunk by the use of cider, at the 
age of eight years, and as drunk as he had ever been by drink- 
ing whisky or wine. This evil of intemperance was not one 
always learnt after a person became twenty-one or twenty-two 
years old. It was often found in mere youth. It was often 
commenced with the drinking of cider : from the use of cider 
the youth went on to the use of home-made wines— currant 
wine, rhubarb wine, raspberry wine, etc., which contained 
fifteen per cent of alcohol, and so the drinking habit grew with 
his age. He ivanted specially to caution all against the use of 
the innocent cider — even sweet cider. When he had got 
drunk on cider he had ten times as big a head the next morn- 



482 THE TEUE PATH ; 

ing as he used to have after getting on a big drunk on whisky- 
straight. He would next speak of lager beer. It was the 
great evil of the West. Lager beer was the juggernaut of the 
West. He would, himself, sooner drink poor whisky, poor 
gin, poor rum, or poor brandy, than he would drink the best 
lager beer that was ever made. He would drink poor whisky 
rather than good lager beer because he would live longer by 
drinking the former, than he would by drinking the latter. 
He spoke from authority. He had graduated from Harvard 
Medical College, and he knew of what he spoke when he made 
this declaration. He said it from a medical point . of view. 
Again he would say of his plan, that it was meant to break 
down the denominational lines in carrying on this work of Re- 
forming drunkards. He wanted no denominational divisions 
in this great work, which should include all men of whatever 
sect, and those without sect. All men needed saving from the 
curse, and consequently all should be included in his move- 
ment — in his plan of reformation. As they did that they 
would succeed ; as they did not do it they would not succeed. 
He himself had come to the decision some time ago that he 
would sooner have the red ribbon in his button-hole than he 
would have it in his nose. It was with this idea in view, then, 
that they had chosen the plan of wearing the red ribbon in the 
button-hole. It said of him who wore it that he was an op- 
poser to the use of strong drink j that he wore that red ribbon 
as an evidence to the world that he was a sympathizer in the 
"red-ribbon" movement, and sympathized with those who 
wore that same red ribbon. The idea of the movement 
was that all who sympathized with it should wear the 
red ribbon as a sign that they sympathized with the move- 
ment, sympathized with the work of saving men from the 
curse -of strong drink. The object was to have all wear 
the red ribbon whether drinkers or not ; that all should 
wear it, not necessarily as a sign that they themselves had 
been reformed, but as an encouragement to others. All should 
be willing to wear it who sympathized with the objects of the 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 483 

order — all brave enough to do it. Let not one pause from 
wearing it because they were afraid it would make them too 
conspicuous. He would suggest, in conclusion, to the young 
ladies, that they should ask their young men, before they 
offered to escort them home : " Have you signed the pledge ? 
Show me your red ribbon !" and if they did not say that they 
had signed the pledge, or saying they had, could not testify to 
it by showing a red ribbon in their button-hole, tell them that 
they could not go home with them until they signed the pledge 
and donned the red ribbon. The speaker himself would say 
to the young ladies that if there were not young men enough 
left to escort them home he would do it himself, though he did 
feel tired out. 

Messrs. Barnes, Parsley and Monroe, all strong and devoted 
advocates of total abstinence, delivered short but highly inter- 
esting speeches. The first-mentioned gentleman stated that " Dr. 
Reynolds with his red-ribbon movement had been the means 
of reforming some two hundred and fifty thousand drunkards 
in the United States since the beginning of his movement." 

Dr. Reynolds 'exhorted all present to step forward, sign the 
pledge and put on themselves the sign of their sympathy with 
the movement. He spoke especially to those who did not 
drink. It was their duty, in order to show their sympathy 
with the reformed ones, to uphold and encourage them in 
their new life, to wear the red ribbon. He invited all to ap- 
proach the pledge-tables, sign the pledge, and to attach to 
their button-holes the red ribbon, which they all did; or nearly 
so, unanimously. Those who did not start to the tables were 
persuaded or compelled into so doing by the more enthusiastic. 
Fully two hundred men, and thirty women, signed the pledge 
and assumed the Reynolds badge. 

The second Reynolds meeting was held at the hall on the 
corner of Halsted street and Blue Island avenue. The attend- 
ance was very large and enthusiastic. Announcements of 
future meetings were made, and the doctor announced that a 
Reform Club would be organized. 



484 THE TRUE PATH ; 

He then began his address, which was interesting and stir- 
ring, and said that he had told them on the previous evening 
all about cider being the devil's kindling-wood ; the homely 
imp of native wines ; the gorgeously-named beverages of the 
gilded sample-room. He would now say of himself, that he 
had been a drunkard for ten years. Four years ago he had 
been in the gutter ; he had suffered the torments of the 
damned ; he had not had a shirt to his back ; he did not own 
a coat ; he was a confirmed sot. During the time of his 
drunkenness he had frequently had delirium tremens. It was 
then that he had suffered so for hours that he would rather 
die in preference to suffering such pains again. He had come 
from New England. There he had been brought up among 
the orthodox. He had been taught in the orthodox ways of 
New England ; was pious, good, straightlaced. But he began 
to drink. He soon after became a drunkard. But what did 
the orthodox say to him when they saw him ? They did not 
try to lead him away. They did not say encouraging words 
to him. They would have let him go to the devil. They 
turned the cold shoulder, and invited him simply either to quit 
drinking or to go to the dogs, as he liked. A temperance 
movement among the women commenced in Ohio ; and here 
he would say a word for women. It was a false notion to 
think that women were only meant as things to wash dishes 
and sew clothes. Their work was to save men. At last, the 
movement, which had spread from Ohio, arrived at Bangor, 
Me., where it was said they pried up the Sunday with a crow-, 
bar. Though he had been brought up as an orthodox Chris- 
tian, he swore at the women and cursed them. He went on 
from bad to worse, but still the women went on working as 
hard as ever, and finally he was saved. He signed the pledge. 
He went to the much-despised temperance meeting and signed 
the pledge never to serve King Alcohol. That was four years 
ago, and he had kept his pledge. He had kept the first part 
of his pledge, to abstain from strong drink. He had, secondly, 
abstained from using as a social drink, for pleasure, alcoholic 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 485 

liquors. In the third point, he had kept his pledge, to do what 
he could, with the help of God, in the way of inducing other 
men to abstain from the use of strong drink — to be a man 
among men. He wanted men to help others as well as them- 
selves. He had not himself at first thought of doing as he 
had done, but he finally thought that it was his duty to do as 
he was doing. As to the red ribbon, it was a part of his 
make-up. The red ribbon had piloted him into the hearts of 
thousands of men. His red ribbon did not advertise him as a 
reformed drunkard. If it did, he would rather be recognized 
as a reformed drunkard than as a confirmed* drunkard. As to 
the character of drunkards, he would say that nearly all drunk- 
ards were good men. He never knew of a drunkard who was 
an absolutely mean man. The red ribbon was a badge of 
honor: Its color was not a very bad color. It was emblem- 
atic of that which would save them. He would ask to be 
excused for speaking so long, but it was not late to hold a 
meeting till 2 o'clock. He hoped it would get so hot in Chi- 
cago before long that people would not venture to go to a 
meeting without carrying a lunch along with them. 

The doctor then explained that ladies should wear a white 
ribbon upon the right shoulder, in front, in the form of a bow, 
and gentlemen should wear a red ribbon tied in the top button- 
hole on the left collar of the coat, and all should wear the 
ribbon, not only then, but all the time. 

Dr. Reynolds further remarked that his movement was a 
democratic movement. " The workingmen were the bone and 
sinew of the country, and they were the bone and sinew too, 
of the saloons." 

The Doxology was then sung, and the crowd gathered 
around the pledge-table, and signed the pledges by the sco v e, 
about two hundred and twenty-four having signed the 
pledge during the course of the evening. 

The next meeting was held in the Rev. Mr. Yonker's Taber- 
nacle. The services were very appropriately opened by the 
singing of that poetic gospel song of " The Morning Light is 



486 THE TKUE PATH; 

Breaking," after which the well known and ever-interesting 
parable of the prodigal son was read by Dr. Reynolds, who 
took the opportunity of the text to compare the condition of 
the young man who ate the husks that the swine had left to 
the young men of these modern times who are now eating the 
husks of that nothingness which the. red juice has produced; 
who through whisky have lost all the means of leading a free 
and honorable life— food, clothing, friends, and best of all, 
self-respect. 

Mrs. Carse, the president of the Women's Christian Tem- 
perance Union of Chicago, was introduced at this meeting and 
received a warm welcome. She spoke of the life-saving sta- 
tions which are scattered around our seaboard, and which do 
such good service. She compared these life-saving stations 
to the life-saving societies of the Women's Christian Temper- 
ance Unions of America, which had established soul-saving 
institutions— the best of life-saving stations — in every city in 
the land. 

Dr. Reynolds, while the contributions were being collected, 
spoke of the tendency to laugh when the hat was ordered to 
be passed among an audience. People had to pay for a glass 
of beer, for car fare, for a drink of whisky, for going to the 
theatre, for everything. People should not laugh, therefore, 
at the passing of the hat around for contributions toward 
carrying on so great a work as theirs. Dr. Reynolds then 
proceeded to say that he did not want to take up the whole of 
the evening himself in speaking. He would say that he was 
not a Methodist himself, but he admired the spirit of the 
Methodist love-feast, where all joined in the expressions of 
mutual love and sympathy. He would call then upon others 
to speak. For himself, he would say that he was unsectarian 
in his efforts after saving mankind. He did not care to what 
religion or denomination those whom he sought to save be- 
longed. He was working for no church, no society. He was 
working for all ; recognized all mankind as his brothers and 
sisters. He wanted to interest all with the work. His meet- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 487 

ings were not called in the interests of drunkards in partic- 
ular. Pie found it more difficult to get out those who never 
drank now, or perhaps never had drunk throughout their lives, 
than it was to get out drunkards. He wanted the first class 
of men — the non-drinkers — as well as the drunkards to attend 
the meetings. He wanted them not only to be non-drinkers, 
but to take a personal interest in the work of making others 
what they were themselves. He would have such men lend 
their sympathies, their names, and their presence to the great 
work. Every temperance man should be a temperance advo- 
cate. As to himself, he would say that he had been drunk for 
seven years. In that time, through drink, he had spent over 
$30,000. He urged as an argument against allowing the use 
of home-made wines and cider — which were supposed to be 
harmless because they were home-made — that such wines con- 
tained 15 per cent, of alcohol, while whisky contained little 
over twice that much, namely 31f4 per cent, of alcohol. It 
was from using these supposed harmless wines that women be- 
came drunkards — women drunkards, he would repeat. There 
were now in America 200,000 women drunkards ; not women 
from the dregs of society ; not women from the lower classes, 
but women from the educated classes, from the middle, the 
upper, and refined classes of society. 

At a grand union temperance meeting, held at the Union 
Park Congregational Church, Dr. Reynolds said they had come 
together for the purpose of doing something. They had not 
come for enjoyment, but they had come to see if the hundreds 
of people present would not testify their love for temperance, 
by wearing a little piece of ribbon — red for the men and white 
for the women, and red and white for the children. He said 
he would tell them how he became a drunkard. First, he was 
a drunkard by inheritance, and had his parents done their 
duty, and kept from him all manner of drinks, he would never 
have been a drunkard. The second step toward drunkenness 
he had taken was when he first sipped that drink that he called 
the "devil's kindling wood." There are thousands of ladies 



488 THE TEUE PATH 



who will drink nothing stronger than cider, but they are not 
aware of the evil that exists in this juice of the apple. Many- 
good people will not sign his ironclad pledge because he included 
in it cider. They all say that there can be no harm in sweet 
cider, and possibly there may be no harm in sweet cider ; but 
cider is not made from good apples. The farmer brings to 
the market all the sound apples, and then makes cider from 
tr^e decayed ones, and from these rotten apples is made the 
liquor that fastidious ladies and gentlemen drink. Do they 
for a moment think that this cider is made from rotten apples 
and worms ? He then spoke of currant wine, and claimed that 
it produced in the little ones a desire for stronger drink. The 
next step was the one that is the curse of the West. Lager 
beer, he said, was causing more hearts to ache than perhaps 
any other liquid. The doctor looks upon this German drink 
as the most dangerous of all, for the reason that thousands of 
young men drink it because it is not considered dangerous. 
It has a pleasant, bitter taste, and many would drink it who 
would not dare to touch whisky or brandy. The next step in 
the downward path, he maintained, is the gilded palaces of 
sin. These places are made very attractive, and from them 
came the hardest cases of drunkenness that he had ever seen. 
The foundation of drunkenness is made long before a person 
is 21 years old. The appetite is formed when the person is 
yet a child. Drunkards are not the curse of a community. 
It is your moderate man who causes all the evil that exists. 
When a boy sees a man reeling about the street in a beastly 
state of intoxication he does not say, " I will be like that man," 
but when he sees the moderate drinker, who never appears to 
be drunk, he says, " I will be like that man. If I wish a drink 
I will take it, but I will never be a drunkard." Poor boy, he 
little knows what he is saying. It will be only a few years 
before he is a curse to himself and the cause of much misery 
to those who love and cherish him. He then spoke of a man 
who is dear to the heart of every son of Illinois. He said : 
"Look at the life of Dick Yates, a man who should have been 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 489 

at the head of the United States government, and would have 
been had it not been for his unfortunate taste for liquor. 
Look at this great man at Washington, a great senator. Look 
at him at Jacksonville, kicked out of a saloon. Look at him 
at St. Louis, where he died a raving maniac. Do you think 
his life was a happy one ? He died a drunkard's death, and 
he passed into a drunkard's eternity, and you all know what a 
drunkard's eternity is. The Bible says a drunkard can never 
enter into the kingdom of God, and I believe the Bible." 

On one occasion at the Wabash Avenue Church Dr. Rey- 
nolds discoursed on the symbolism of the red ribbon, and 
remarked that it was much better to wear the red on the breast 
than on the nose. It had a much higher symbolical meaning. It 
showed the consistency of the wearer in his belief in the vir- 
tue of temperance. Wearing the ribbon at the button-hole was 
an evidence to all the world that he, for one, was a believer in 
temperance, and it also said to other men that he had the 
bravery to say, through it, to the world, that he was not 
ashamed of being a temperance man. All those who believed 
in temperance should be willing to bear this evidence of the 
act. Another good effect of wearing the red ribbon was that 
no one who had any respect for himself would attempt or dare 
to enter into a saloon with that ribbon tied to his button-hole. 
He would also have children wear it, to declare for temperance 
while they were young. It would be a help to them, to save 
them from the tempter, drink. 

The Rev. Mr. Patten spoke and said he was in full sympa- 
thy with the red-ribbon movement. He had for a time kept 
somewhat apart from the movement by the idea that the 
ordinary temperance societies kept too much away from God : 
did not ask God to help them in the work of reformation. But 
when he had read the pledge he had altered his opinions. The 
pledge stated, he said, that the signer thereof would refrain 
from the use of strong drink by the help of God. He could 
now fully indorse the work. Those who became temperance 
men with such a pledge should become apostles in the great 



490 THE TEUE PATH 



cause of reforming others, after having been reformed them- 
selves. In conclusion he would say that he took great pleasure 
in putting on the red ribbon, though it had at first somewhat 
astonished his parishioners. 

Mr. Rowland followed, and spoke of the foolishness of time 
pledges, and showed that they were but snares, and valueless 
to those who sign them. There was no steadiness of purpose 
in those who took such a pledge. They had not the proper 
foundation to build upon ; no one to help them in time of 
need. 

Dr. Reynolds told a story of a lady who wondered why so 
few had come to the front to sign a pledge at a certain temper- 
ance meeting. They could not one of them who were present 
but say that the arguments were good ones. None could have 
been present who were not convinced. He had thought of the 
circumstance. There was no one to encourage them. No 
one with red ribbons to show them the way. He argued that 
the red ribbon should be tied in the button-hole in a hard 
knot, for while they could not get it off, they would not be 
likely, even if they felt like it, to enter into a saloon to drink. 
While they were trying to untie such a hard knot the devil 
would vanish, and the owner of the red ribbon would be 
saved. 

At a meeting of the West Side Red-Ribbon Reform Club, 
the Rev. Dr. Ravlin addressed the audience, and said that he 
could give no experience relative to drunkenness, but had 
worked in the cause of temperance for years, and was one of 
the pioneers who began the work in the pulpit. Referring 
back to the year 1856, he said, when he began to preach 
against intemperance, his sermons were denounced as political, 
and himself as being in alliance with some hostile party. The 
times, he thought, had undergone a great change. He next 
referred to the unwarranted pride assumed by some Christians 
who refuse to identify themselves with the work, and re- 
counted a number of instances relative to the Saviour's mis- 
sion, and his work among the Gentiles. Drunkards, he said, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 491 

need sympathy, and all the combined influences that can be 
thrown around them, to assist them to effect a reform. Fully 
one-half of the saloons in the city, he thought, could be abol- 
ished if proper effort was taken to get men to sign the pledge. 
Saloon-keepers, he said, like most other people, are working 
for money, and that, from a financial standpoint, they were 
not so much to blame. Stop the trade a short time, and their 
rents would compel them to abandon their business. Refer- 
ence was then made to the use of improper wine at the com- 
munion table, which, he thought, was very dangerous in the 
case of reformed drunkards. "Yield Not to Temptation" 
was then sung, after which the leader introduced to the 
audience Captain B. F. Johnson, eleven years a saloon-keeper, 
but who joined the red-ribbon movement last May, and has 
been actively engaged in the work. The city of Indianapolis 
now, he said, had 113 less saloons than.it had last spring, and 
the number of saloons in many other cities he has been work- 
ing had been reduced fully one-half. The meeting closed 
by the singing of " Hold the Fort," and about fifty, the most 
of whom were laboring men, signed the pledge. 

On another occasion at a red-ribbon meeting, held in St. 
Paul's Methodist Church, Mr. John Monroe, the president of 
the club, opened the meeting by saying that he supposed 
nearly all present were temperance people, and that the object 
of the meeting was to raise up missionaries who would go 
into the field and work for the rescue of their fellow-men. 
The evils of intemperance he attributed to three causes, 
namely : The social circle, the church, and the government. 
The social and family circles he reproved for the leniency in 
regard to the use of cider and wines. The church, for toler- 
ating within its walls members who do not adhere to. the 
principles of temperance, and preachers for not more fre- 
quently portraying intemperance as a great sin. The govern- 
ment, he said, was also greatly in fault for licensing saloons ; 
for licensing the manufacture of liquor and for issuing whisky 
to soldiers, which he thought was certainly very injudicious, 



492 THE TRUE PATH; 

as any one might see who would trace its results during and 
after the rebellion. The cheap lunches offered in the saloons 
are a great evil. Many go in, not so much for something to 
drink, but to get something to eat. There are 2,000 men, he 
said, in this city, who are out of employment. Something 
must be done, and he thought that if saloon-keepers could 
give men a glass of beer and a dish of soup for five cents, 
there certainly could be places established where the latter 
could be furnished for the same sum. This, in any event, he 
said, should be done at once, and if it could not be made self- 
supporting he thought the people of Chicago would not hesi- 
tate to make up the small deficiency. 

The Wabash Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church contained 
a dense throng one evening to hear Dr. Reynolds. The 
assemblage included every variety of the red-ribbon advocate, 
and many who were willing, from various causes, to wear the 
symbolic cardinal emblem. There was a large number of men 
present, rough in dress and addicted to strong drink, but who, 
nevertheless, were awakened to the degrading position they 
had been occupying. The meeting was opened with praying 
and singing, after which Dr. Reynolds addressed the audience. 
He chose for his subject the story of the Good Samaritan, and 
deducted therefrom an interesting temperance lesson. Dr. 
Reynolds is not a lecturer, but rather, as he claims, " one of 
the boys," only that now he is on the right side, when before 
he was on the wrong side. The " falling of the man among 
thieves," as in the story of the Good Samaritan, he likened to 
the man who fell among the rum-sellers. The rum-seller is the 
worst kind of a thief, for he not only robs man of his money, 
of the comfort of his home, but also takes from him the char- 
acter and honor which every man has naturally in his system. 
He wanted his hearers to think only of his efforts as those of 
a Good Samaritan who came before them only to show them 
the way to recover from the influence and its accompanying 
injuries, consequent upon their falling among the thieves of 
manhood and the scourges of society, in which class the rum- 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEEA1NTCE. 493 

seller is the most dangerous. He begged his hearers, then, to 
put on the red ribbon, and by their good example bring into 
the band of temperance men many friends who would not 
otherwise join. 

He explained the manner of organizing reform clubs, and 
read the pledge, stating that in the club only men were 
allowed to sign the pledge. The reform was men's work, and 
not boy's play. He then gave a history of the movement, of 
which he had the honor 10 be the originator. Originally only 
reformed drunkards were allowed to become members of the 
clubs, but latterly he has found it much more just and equitable 
to allow men of temperance principles to become members. 
He then branched off into a history of that portion of his life 
when he was dancing on the road to the devil. It was the 
wrong way, but he had eventually struck the right path, and 
he felt well pleased with his " right about face," as he called 
it. He did not think it necessary to tell any man that strong 
drink was injurious ; the worst drunkard in the country will 
admit it. The man that signs this pledge cannot become a 
drunkard in the world, if the signer keeps it, while there are 
many kinds of pledges which cannot prevent drunkenness, if 
lived up to strictly. The details of organizing a reform club 
were then explained. In explaining some of the rules regard- 
ing members who have violated their pledges, the singular 
benefits of reform clubs was shown by the statement that of 
all the members of reform clubs in the Union, only 15 per cent, 
of them ever violated their pledges. The reason saloon- 
keepers are not generally drunkards is because their business 
of fleecing men requires them to be cool-headed men, and no 
cool-headed man with his own interest at heart will drink. 
He asked his listeners to sign the pledge, and when they go, 
take a pledge with space for twelve signers on it, and get their 
friends whom they might meet on the street, in the counting- 
room, or store, and even seek them in their homes or resorts, 
to become members. He spoke of a grand parade of red, 
white and blue ribbonites at some time in the future, but with- 



494 THE TKTTE PATH ; 

held the full particulars because of the presence of reporters. 
He concluded by requesting every one who had not already 
signed the pledge to come forward and do so. 

Over thirty ' drinking men came forward and signed the 
pledge. 

Mr. Barnes, one of the vice-presidents of the first Red-Rib 
bon Club, then addressed the meeting, and said that there 
w r ere fifty men who nought to sign. He called their attention 
to the fact that, as Doc Woods expresses it, every bottle of 
whisky — yea, every drop — contained myriads of little devils, 
and once the man became possessed of them, he wanted to 
fight and quarrel — in fact raise a little hell to accommodate 
them. He was not a reformed drunkard, because he had never 
cared for it ; but he saw in the movement, by a general sup- 
port of every man of temperance principles, an opportunity to 
encourage the men who need some such reform movement. 

Mr. J. H. Wood of the stock yards was then introduced. 
John is well known on the South Side, and, as he admitted, his 
acquaintance with South Side saloon-keepers was quite exten- 
sive. He had tried drinking for twelve years, and he w T as not 
the better for it in any way. He took the pledge the other 
night, and some said he would have hard work to keep it, but 
it was the reverse, because any man who takes the pledge 
earnestly will never become dry. 

A special meeting was held at Carpenter Hall to hear E. C. 
Cremieux, the reformed drunkard, popularly known as " Bit- 
ters," deliver a temperance address. In his address the 
speaker pointed out and illustrated at some length the fact 
that men addicted to the use of strong drink were bowed down 
in a slavery worse than were the colored people of the South 
before the war. 

At a meeting conducted by Mr. John Monroe, it was an- 
nounced that since the advent of Dr. Reynolds twelve thou- 
sand persons had taken the total abstinence pledge in the city 
of Chicago, and there was ground of opinion that as many 
more would join the red-ribbon cause before the Reynolds 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 495 

series of meetings closed, and the doctor departed for new 
fields of labor. 

At a woman's meeting held in the Union Square Church 
under the auspices of the Women's Christian Temperance 
Union, Mrs. Carse, the president, read a report of the saloon- 
keepers' meeting, as published in one of the morning papers. 
She commented on the meaning of the meeting. There were 
only thirty saloon-keepers present, but it represented 3,000 
others backing them. She found consolation in the fact that 
they were fighting the battle of the Lord, and were not dis- 
mayed, even though every whisky-seller in Chicago, with all 
their political influence and money, were to combine against 
them. The war was commenced four years ago in Ohio by 
the crusaders, and it would not cease till the great fiend of in- 
temperance had been abolished and his reign forever closed. 
She begged all her hearers to come out and fight for the cause 
of the Lord, and put on the temperance ribbon. 

After an earnest temperance prayer by Mrs. Hogan, an 
address on temperance was made by the Rev. W. H. Thomp- 
son. He had also read of the saloon-keepers' meeting, and he 
was glad of it, for it told him that if the devil is not dead, it 
is spared. He had also noted that there were more saloon- 
keepers going into bankruptcy than in any other business ; and 
that furthermore, they were reducing the price of their drinks. 
It was a good omen, and showed that the temperance move- 
ment was surely growing, and the time is not far off when 
every one will be a temperance man, directly or indirectly, 
except the saloon-keeper, and even he would come in when he 
saw the great wrongs he had been doimg. The saloon-keeping 
interest was a most painful one, but there was a power over all 
which is Almighty. The cause of temperance is the cause of 
God, that Almighty power, and, though the saloon-keepers 
resist, they must finally succumb. 

The Rev. A. W. Patten spoke of several of the practical ob- 
jections to the red-ribbon movement. Among them was one 
by a lady, who averred that they " couldn't make mince pies 



496 THE TRUE PATH; 

without boiled cider," but he thought they could if they felt 
enough interest in temperance, for then they should feel as Dr. 
Reynolds, that the best way to get rid of the evil of drink 
was by striking at the root. 

At one of the meetings a gentleman in the audience with a 
strong Swedish accent, got up and made a few forcible re- 
marks. 

He said he came from a country where drinking was a 
common vice, and that he knew something of its evils. He 
then told his brief experience with these evils. He impressed 
upon the ladies present to marry only temperance men. He 
was a married man himself, but he wanted to shut out all the 
young men who drink by organizing a ladies' temperance 
league, the principles of which would be to associate with no 
gentlemen who drank spirituous liquors. 

The Rev. W. F. Crafts said that he and a friend had been 
many times taken for reformed drunkards because they wore 
the red ribbon, which he enjoyed hugely. He said he was not 
afraid to " do right," and he wanted his listeners to do like- 
wise. " The red ribbon," he said, " was not the badge of a 
reformed drunkard. It was the emblem which told the world 
that the wearer was a ' total abstinence ' man; nothing more 
and nothing less than that !" 

Mr. Brown confessed before a large concourse of people 
that he had been a hard drinker in his life. He had taken all 
sorts of pledges in his own strength, but never succeeded in 
fully reforming himself until he became converted to the Lord 
Jesus Christ, to whose loving kindness he was indebted for his 
reformation and redemption. He thought the only hope for 
a man addicted to the use of intoxicating liquors was to repent 
of his sin and embrace the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Mr. Hines acknowledged that he stood there before the au- 
dience a redeemed man. He had tried all sorts of plans to 
reform, but if it had not been for Christ he would have been 
a drunkard still. 

Mr. Carpenter, a very young man, said he began to drink 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 497 

when a mere school boy. He had been a hard drinker for 
fully eleven years. He had been to the Yfashingtonian Home, 
but broke out again. He attributed his conversion to prayer. 
His trust was in Jesus. 

Mr. Crowell told the audience that his life had been a wild 
and reckless one, and that it was not without considerable 
struggle that he became a reformed man. He put his trust in 
God, and hoped to live a sober, temperate life. 

W. H. Murray, a converted member of the Chicago Board 
of Trade, said at one of the meetings, he had been a drinker 
for twenty years. He was now redeemed ; but, as other 
brothers had remarked before him, the only cure for drunken- 
ness was the blood of Christ. He had tried all other means 
and failed, and it was not until he went to the throne of God 
and obtained the love of Jesus that he became firm. It was 
his anchor and his hope. Without it no man could become 
thoroughly reformed. 

Mr. Braizer said it was no pleasant thing to get up and tell 
the public he had been a drinking man, and indeed he would 
not were it not for the fact that in so doing he might be of 
benefit to others. He said he was converted through faith in 
the Lord Jesus Christ. He stood there that night buoyed up 
and sustained by the Lord, and he owed his reform to God and 
not to himself. 

Mr. J. H. Wood, of the firm of Wood Brothers, of the stock 
yards, brought all his brothers, their sons, and all their employ- 
ees, thirty-nine in number, one evening to the meeting, who 
signed the pledge in a body. In bringing his company into 
the red-ribbon line, he made a characteristic speech, in which he 
stated that he had been a drinker all his life, and he was glad 
now to become a temperance man. 

Mr. Fuller, a rescued man, was introduced at a meeting, and 
related his experiences in a touching manner. It was for 
about twenty-one years that he was addicted to the use of 
intoxicating drinks. In 1857 he learnt to drink in Chicago. 
Here he learned, and here he renounced his acquaint&ce with 



498 THE TKUE PATH ; 

intemperance. He took the pledge several weeks ago, but it 
was one with himself. About three weeks ago he joined the 
Reynolds movement, and was decorated with the red ribbon. 
It was a terrible struggle to resist the appetite long catered to; 
but, thanks to the help of God, whom he solicited in prayer, he 
became successful, and can now maintain his integrity. 

Colonel Dillon said at one of the meetings that he had been 
a drinking man, and, now that he had stopped he was not 
ashamed to own it. He had formerly represented our country 
in a foreign land, and, notwithstanding all the honors heaped 
upon him, he became a drunkard. He said he associated 
continually with politicians, and gave as his belief that no mau 
could continually associate with politicians without becoming 
depraved. He said that prayer saved him. from drunkenness. 

Mr. Swallow said at a meeting that he had drank a good 
deal of w T hisky for twenty years. When he started he 
deluded himself into the belief that he could stop when he 
wanted to resist the appetite, until a year ago he became posi- 
tively alarmed. A friend asked him to come and take the red 
ribbon, and a thought struck him that it was the right time, 
and he signed the Reynolds pledge. 

Mr. O'Connell, a stout laboring man of about five and thirty 
years, was introduced at a meeting, and stated that he had not 
been idle two months since he was a boy, yet the saloon-keepers 
had all that he had accumulated. As that was the first speech* 
he had ever made, he asked to be excused, and wished the 
movement a hearty God-speed. 

Thomas M. Conpropst on being introduced to the audience 
urged, from sad experience, the necessity of total abstinence 
on the part of any* one wh^e appetite was in the least degree 
perverted. As to happiness, he considered sobriety one of the 
essential avenues that lead to its attainment. The advantages 
of signing a pledge and of making a public confession, he 
thought, were beneficial to the extent that by so doing one is 
charged with personal self-respect, a very necessary quality, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 499 

and not infrequently the most efficient fulcrum against which, 
the lever of reform could be brought to bear. 

Mrs. Helen M. Dunks, of Hudson, obtained a judgment for 
$3,600 against William Friend, a wealthy liquor-seller. Her 
husband, a well-to-do manufacturing chemist, w T ell known in 
the West, became a frequenter of Friend's saloon, and in an 
incredibly short time was completely ruined in body, business, 
and mind, from drink. 

Mr. W. O. Lattimore, a lawyer, said his conversion took 
place a year ago last Thanksgiving. He said it was a very 
difficult task to become a temperate man by will-power, un- 
aided by the assistance of the Lord. His own conversion was 
largely brought about through the assistance of the Lord Jesus 
Christ who was ready to receive all sinners, and from the day 
he had accepted Christ he had had no further difficulty in 
struggling against his appetite for strong drink. He exhorted 
the drinking men to repent and accept the gospel, and thereby 
being joy and peace to many desolate homes. God did not 
force any one to come. If they choose to come unto Him He 
is ready to receive them. 

The evening of February 1 saw an immense crowd in the 
Methodist Church, corner of Langley avenue and Thirty-ninth 
street. The edifice was crowded in every part, and the exer- 
cises were of a very interesting character. After the singing 
of several stirring hymns, and an earnest prayer by the Rev. 
Mr. Glend^nning, Dr. Reynolds informed the audience that he 
had not come before them to relate funny stories, or to make 
exhibitions of the unfortunate drunkard. The subject, he 
said, should be treated with a great degree of sympathy, and 
every individual as a brother or sister. No one so much 
appreciates sympathy as a drunkard. His own fall he attrib- 
uted to hereditary causes, and gave an account of how he be- 
came a drunkard by the use of what are called innocent 
drinks, namely, cider and wines — adding that few people are 
aware of the insidious influences attending their use, and said 
that a cup of cider would have the same effect on a child that 



500 THE TRUE PATH ; 

the same quantity of whisky would have on an adult. He 
then spoke of the suffering he had endured, and having squan- 
dered $30,000 in a short time by means of the great destroyer. 
One of the important clauses of the pledge he uses was that 
which referred to man's inability to save himself ; another 
was that which referred to the use of moderate drinks. High- 
class saloons, he thought, were more injurious than those of a 
lower order. The one was the beginning of a man's downfall, 
the other ended his career. The prospects for a good temper- 
ance wave in this city, he thought, were becoming quite ap- 
parent. One reformed drunkard, he said, had already pro- 
cured twenty-six names to the pledge. Several other speakers 
then addressed the meeting, and expressed a determination to 
continue the undertaking. 

One of the most interesting meetings held by the doctor was 
that in the Centenary Church, corner of Monroe and Morgan 
streets. The building was crowded almost to suffocation, and 
a great number of people were obliged to turn away from the 
doors, disappointed at not being accommodated with seats, or 
at least with standing room, both of which were entirely and 
absolutely out of the question. 

The Rev. Dr. Thomas introduced the advocate of the red 
ribbon in a pithy and pleasing manner, and the immense audi- 
ence greeted Dr. Reynolds in the most enthusiastic fashion 
imaginable. He was obliged to stand before them some 
seconds bowing his thanks for their kind welcome. He did 
not deliver what could be properly called a lecture ; but he 
spoke in a very felicitous vein. 

He began by remarking that he never delivered a lecture in 
his life, and the many who came there to hear him he must 
disappoint in not delivering a lecture. His aim was to induce 
men to leave the ways of drunkenness, and his work was to 
reform men, not to interest them only with lectures. He 
stated his intention to speak from experience, as for six years 
he had been a confirmed drunkard. He knew what the drunk- 
ards had to do to recover their manhood lost in drink, and, 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKAETCE. 501 

judging from the lessons of his own life when a drunkard, he 
certainly had experienced all the evils of intemperance. He 
related them in his own characteristic manner, laying particu- 
lar stress on the beginning of an intemperate life, for which 
3ider, he said, was the favorite opening wedge. Cider is the 
devil's kindling-wood, and from it is started the fire which 
afterward consumes the body. He showed in a plain, matter- 
of-fact way that there was much of the element of danger, 
alcohol, in cider, and consequently it was as much of an evil 
as even stronger drink. After it came the American currant 
wine, when the beginner found that cider was not potent 
enough to satisfy the appetite started by the " devil's kindling- 
wood." They drink it under the impression that it is a more 
elegant drink than cider and not because it is the demand of the 
appetite. He then referred to what he called the curse of the 
West, meaning lager beer. He gave a few statistics regarding 
beer, its alcoholic qualities, and its patrons, who number 200,- 
000 drinkers, and imagine it is a healthy drink or do it because 
they like it. The former reason is a false one, for there was 
not a doctor in the city or country but will say it is a stimu- 
lant and not a health-giving drink. He then referred to the 
gilded hells in the city and imitations in the little country 
town. He informed his readers it was not neccessary to look 
into " Hell's Half-acre," to find the evils of drink or to find 
the intemperate guzzler. They can be found even in society, 
and their resorts will be found occupying valuable space in 
prominent business blocks, and in many cases in the center of 
the best neighborhoods. They were finely furnished saloons, 
or, as they call them, "parlors," and truly they were the par- 
lors of the devil, where the mint julep, the " Tom and Jerry," 
brandy smashes, and other detestable concoctions were daily 
and hourly, even every second, passed over the counter to the 
foolish young men, and even old men. They did not drink 
because they had a great liking for it, but rather because it 
was a fashion. He then told how it came that he signed the 
pledge and was saved from a drunkard's death. He was in 



502 THE TKTTE PATH ; 

favor of nothing but total abstinence. There was no half- 
way place in his doctrine. He then advocated the red-ribbon 
movement in his own peculiar manner. The red ribbon was 
not a sign of the reformed drunkard, it is an emblem which 
all men who believed in total abstinence should wear, and 
w T hich proclaimed to the world the wearer's principles, and 
announced that he is not afraid to tell the world that he cared 
not for alcoholic drinks. 

A gentleman asked the doctor this question : "Is there any 
truth in the statement which has been made .in some papers 
that you do not preach saving grace and seek the regeneration 
of men, but only to reform them after a sort of independent 
reformative method, with the plan of salvation omitted ?" 

He replied: "My work is not that of a preacher; but 
it is to induce men to sign the pledge. I consider that 
the first step toward salvation in the case of some men — 
to sign the pledge, and we trust God to help them keep it. 
I'm .not a preacher — I'm a reformed drunkard, and I know that 
some men have to be brought up to a certain point before they 
can accept the idea of salvation by faith. I was probably 
about as low as any man ever was, but I signed the pledge. 
Isn't it better to have a man stop being a drunkard even 
though he isn't converted right away ? I signed the pledge, 
and that was the first step ; then after a while I found how to 
trust God to help me." 

In their further conversation, the doctor stated that 
the object of his work was to get men on to the right 
track, so that they could lead at last out into the light. 
He spoke of the evils of beer. " The hardest men we have 
to deal with, are young fellows from fourteen to twenty- 
two, who drink beer," said he. " Beer is the curse of the West. 
Men persuade themselves that because they don't drink whisky 
they're not drunkards, but it aint so. I've been as drunk on 
beer as ever I was on rum. These young men like you, my 
brother, who brink beer, ten years from now will be drunk- 
ards. Alcohol is alcohol, and it don't matter how a man gets 



0^, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 503 

it into his stomach, the effect is the same. Some day the 
people will see it. This evil is going to be abolished. God '11 
bless this work. It may not be in my day, but I know, that 
sometime-^I don't know how or when, but sometime — this 
will be realized. It's going to ruin the business of the saloons. 
They've got to feel it, and I only wish to God it would cut off 
their business altogether." 

In discussing the support received by Dr. Reynolds in 
Chicago, the question was put : 

"How does it compare with the work in large cities you 
have been in ?" 

" Well, the largest city I ever worked in was Lowell, Mass., 
and that was much smaller than Chicago." 

" How about the support you have received here from min- 
isters and churches?" asked the writer. 

" During January," replied he, " the ministers and churches 
have the week of prayer and meetings about every night ; so 
they have been engaged. But I have their sympathy and 
prayers. The ministers of all the evangelical churches are 
with me in spirit, and many have been with me in body." 

" Then they bave not left your movement to be supervised by 
yourself and the Woman's Christian Temperance Union." 

" By no means. I was invited here by the union, but I've 
received, and am all the time receiving, letters of encourage- 
ment from the ministers and the people of the church." 

The work done by the doctor in Chicago was a brilliant 
phase in the annals of the red-ribbon reform movement. Here 
his success assumed gigantic proportions, and here his Reform 
Club system received a vigorous impetus to fresher and 
stronger vitality. We can best give a general resume of his 
efforts as expressed in his own language to a journalist, who 
was sent to interview him : 

The doctor showed one of his pledges. It was as follows : 
" We, the undersigned, for our own good and the good of the 
world in which Ave live, do hereby promise and engage, with 
the help of Almighty God, to abstain from buying, selling 



504 THE TRUE PATH 



or using alcoholic or malt beverages, wine and cider in- 
cluded." 

" That is the pledge," said the doctor, " that we form our 
Reform Clubs on. I claim that it's the hardest pledge pre- 
sented, and I'd rather have a dozen men sign that and become 
solid, firm, fixed, than to have 200 sign one of these easy- 
going pledges." 

" How many signers of the pledge have you had since you 
began your work ?" 

" Since three years ago, when we started on this system, 
upward of 300,000 men have signed it." 

"How many of those are now members of your Reform 
Clubs?" 

" Well, about 85 per cent, have remained in line — and that, 
we think, is an argument that God is in our work." 

In regard to the general advantages of getting a man to 
sign the pledge aside from his religious conversion, Dr. Rey- 
nolds said: "You see there are narrow-minded people who can't 
see the good of reforming a man without converting him; but 
there are indirect advantages. If a man becomes steady and 
sober and some of his children get to going to Sunday-school, 
it seems to me there's some good in his signing the pledge, 
even though he don't get converted himself." 

Again the doctor said in the same conversation : 

" I'll tell you. Here's John, for instance. His wife's sick 
at home and hasn't any bread or medicine, because he spends 
his money for rum. His children can't go out to-day on ac- 
count of the snow, because they haven't any shoes. Well, 
John wishes it wasn't that way. He's been wishing so for 
years, but he's kept on drinking. He signs our pledge. His 
wife gets a doctor. They get a pane of glass in where there 
was an old hat. John has stopped drinking. His wife can 
go out to church. He stays at home and curses and swears as 
much as ever, maybe, but he don't drink any more, or maybe 
he wanders around on the wharves to kill the time. He won't 
go to church. He has a prejudice against church, which 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 505 

liquor has produced, and of which we all have enough anyway 
without liquor ; but by-and-by there's a rainy night, and John 
stands at the church door waiting to take Susan, his wife, you 
know, home from prayer-meeting. He goes in — just inside 
the door ; that's all. He sees it isn't such a bad place. The 
children have been bringing home tracts. He gets to thinking 
about these things. Now, hasn't there some good come from 
signing that pledge ? I think so. If, when John gets to 
thinking, he gets converted, so much the better ; but if he 
don't, isn't it better to have him a steady man than a dirty 
drunkard ? " 

A gentleman friend of Doctor Reynolds, while riding in a 
street car, noticed a red and white ribbon pinned on the dress 
of a little girl, and he questioned her as to what it meant. 

The little one said that it was a temperance badge. The 
gentleman inquired : " Whose little girl are you ? " and re- 
ceived the reply: "I am my father's little girl, but lama 
member of Dr. Reynolds' temperance club." Becoming very 
much interested in the little one's prattle the gentleman asked : 
" Is your father a member of the red-ribbon club ? " The 
child answered: "Yes, sir; my papa joined the club just as 
soon as my mamma and I got our ribbons. Mamma wears a 
white ribbon, papa a red one, and I a red and white one." The 
child's father had joined the temperance movement as soon as 
he saw his wife and child had become members. 

Mr. L. A. Furlong, a reformed gambler and drinker, of New 
York city, related in a very interesting manner his experiences 
for the last twenty years. He was once a member of the 
Americus Club, of which Tweed was president, and he gave it 
as his opinion that this club had done a great deal to corrupt 
and ruin the youth of New York. He briefly sketched the 
various stages of his own career. First, in the mercantile 
business himself ; then, through dissipation, compelled to 
travel for a living, and finally, after a series of misfortunes, 
he became a gambler. He was converted last November in 



506 i THE TRUE PATH. 

* 

Kansas city, and it was his intention to do what he could to 
persuade others to follow suit. 

Mr. Martin said, at one of the Chicago red-ribbon meet- 
ings, that he had repeatedly formed resolutions, but had as 
often failed, and felt confident that as for himself there was 
no hope except by divine assistance. He also spoke of the 
great assistance he received by means of the Washingtonian 
Home, and thought it one of the noblest institutions in Chi- 
cago. 

Such men as Henry A. Reynolds are grand instruments of 
redeeming grace, and a great element of their power is that 
they recognize themselves as such, and invoke the help of 
prayer. The motto " Dare to do right," which is imperishably 
associated with his name, has become the shibboleth of hun- 
dreds of thousands, and, under the favor and help of God, they 
have dared to do right by emerging from the dark slough of 
drunkenness, and consecrating themselves to earnest and self- 
respecting lives. 

The temperance wave under Murphy and Reynolds has 
rolled like a Nile flood over the land, fertilizing the deeds of 
good and truth, and we have not yet commenced to realize the 
great harvest that remains to be reaped. An army of patient 
and enthusiastic workers has been organized under the gen- 
eralship of these two chiefs, and every week adds to their 
triumphs, and is making fresh history of the progress of a 
magnificent cause. The prayers of the good and faithful 
Christians throughout the country are with them, and with 
these prayers the fervent belief that the work inaugurated is 
only in its beginnings, as grand as the results have been. 



PART V. 



HISTOEY OF THE CEUSADE 



AND THE 



WOMAN'S CHRISTIAN TEMPERANCE UNION. 




Mrs. ANNIE WITTENMYER, 
President Woman's National Christian Temperance Union. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEBANCE. 511 



PART V. 

THE CRUSADE AND THE WOMAN'S CHRISTIAN 
TEMPERANCE UNION. 

CHAPTER XXV. 

THE PART OF WOMAN IN THE GREAT TEMPERANCE MOVEMENT. 

ORIGIN AND PROGRESS OF THE WOMEN'S CRUSADE. — FEA- 
TURES OF THE AGITATION AND ITS BENEFICENT RESULTS. 

Womajs" as a factor in the temperance cause has exercised a 
very remarkable influence, notably so during the last decade. 
Not merely as a social power, where woman is always so great 
a force, but in organized work has her agency been a grand 
one. Probably few phenomena have been more unique than 
the crusades which agitated the country some years since. 
These laid the foundation for the Woman's Christian Temper- 
ance Unions throughout the land, and the history of the one 
movement is inseparable from the other, and although we 
have already spoken of the women's organizations in describing 
the Reynolds temperance movement, our readers will hardly 
rest contented without a fuller account of a very important 
phase of the temperance work. First we will give a history 
of the crusade movement, for this was the rock foundation of 
the organized woman's work of to-day. 

Dr. Dio Lewis was the originator of the Woman's Crusade. 
In the winter of 1873 he was at the little town of Hillsboro, 
Ohio, it being one of the points of his lecturing tour. In his 
lecture delivered here he narrated in a most effective manner, 
how forty years before, his pious mother, the wife of a 
wretched drunkard, who was struggling to feed, clothe and 



512 THE TEUE PATH; 

educate her young and helpless family, went with a band of 
sympathetic and devoted women who had a similar sorrow, to 
the different tavern-keepers, and kneeling down in each bar- 
room, prayed with and for the proprietors, and besought them 
to abandon a business that was cursing their neighbors and 
bringing want and suffering into many once happy homes. 
He told his listeners that many a time he remembered his 
mother going up to the garret to pray, and hearing her cry 
out, " How long, O Lord ! how long ! how long !" and that 
when she came down how red her eyes would be from weeping 
and how her face shone, as with heavenly light. He said this 
band of devoted Eastern women worked zealously, and finally, 
with God's help, conquered. He asked any one before him 
then, who was willing to follow her example, to stand up. At 
this startling demand nearly the entire audience arose. The 
doctor congratulated them and appointed a meeting to be held 
in the Presbyterian church at nine o'clock the next morning. 

Dr. Lewis, while in Hillsboro, was the guest of ex-Governor 
Trimble, the father of Mrs. E. J. Thompson, who became so 
prominent in the crusade. This lady was a most cultivated, 
devoted Christian. She did not attend the doctor's lecture ; 
but she was " prepared," she writes, " as those who watch for 
the morning, for the first gray light upon this dark night of 
sorrow. Few comments were made in our house upon this 
new line of policy until after breakfast the next morning, 
when, just as we gathered about the hearthstone, my daughter 
Mary said, very gently, ' Mother, will you go to the meeting 
this morning ?' Hesitatingly I replied : ' I don't know yet 
what I shall do.' My husband, fully appreciating the respon- 
sibility of the moment, said : c Children, let us leave your 
mother alone ; for you know where she goes with all vexed 
questions,' and, pointing to the old family Bible, left the room. 
The awful responsibility of the step that I must needs next 
take was wonderfully relieved by thought of the ' cloudy pil- 
lar' and ' parted waters' of the past ; hence, with confidence, 
I was about turning my eye of faith ' up to the hills ' from 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 513 

•whence had my help come, when, in response to a gentle tap 
at my door, I met my dear Mary, who, with her Bible in hand 
and tearful eye, said : 'Mother, I opened to the 146th Psalm, 
and I believe it is for you.' She withdrew, and I sat down to 
read the wonderful message from God. As I read what I had 
so often read before, the Spirit so strangely 'took of the 
things of God,' and showed me new meaning, I no longer hes- 
itated, but, in the strength thus imparted, started to the scene 
of action. 

" Upon entering the church I was startled to find myself 
chosen their leader. The old Bible was taken down from the 
desk, and the 146th Psalm read. Mrs. General McDowell, by 
request, led in prayer, and, although she had never before 
heard her own voice in a public prayer, on this occasion c the 
tongue of fire ' sat upon her, and all were deeply affected, 
Mrs. Cowden, our Methodist minister's wife, was then re- 
quested to sing to a familiar air, 

li L Give to the winds thy fears, 
Hope and be undismayed ; 
God hears thy sighs and counts thy tears: 
He will lift up thy head ; ' 

and whilst thus engaged, the women (seventy-five in number) 
fell in line, two and two, and proceeded first to the drug stores 
and then to the hotels and saloons." 

This was the commencement of the great work afterwards 
crowned with such glowing success. The band consisted of 
seventy-five ladies. A pledge was prepared for druggists, 
saloon-keepers and voters ; and the ladies bound themselves 
by the following solemn obligation : 

" We, the ladies whose names are hereto appended, agree 
and resolve, with God's help, we will stand by each other in 
this work, and persevere until it is accomplished, and see to it, 
so far as our influence goes, that the traffic shall never be re- 
sumed." 

This serious undertaking on the part of the ladies attracted 



514 THE TKUE PATH ; 

the attention of the men, and, at their meeting in the Presby- 
terian church, several prominent citizens and clergymen ad- 
dressed them before they started out on their visits to the 
various saloons. It was Christmas, the very day of all the 
year we love to gather about the hearth of home, with our 
dear ones, and commune together. 

The work in hand was unfamiliar to the ladies and rather 
alarming to them, as they were to go where they had never 
gone before. It was totally foreign to all the established rules 
of womanly conduct to go into low saloons, and, in the midst 
of drunken, vicious and profane men to engage in the solemn 
act of divine worship. They were full of doubts and fears, 
and were half inclined to abandon what seemed to be a forlorn, 
almost hopeless undertaking. However, the thought of the 
beloved husbands, sons and fathers who were forced to run 
the gauntlet of the drinking-dens every day in the year, 
strengthened them and impelled them onward. 

Headed by Mrs. E. J. Thompson, these noble women com- 
menced their glorious work. Until the month of June they 
visited the saloons almost daily. Five saloons and three drug 
stores surrendered in a few days. One man, a druggist, sell- 
ing liquors illegally, refused to discontinue his nefarious traffic. 
A " tabernacle " was erected in front of his place for the ladies, 
and here, day after day, they held a continuous prayer-meeting 
from early morning till late at night. The druggist procured 
an injunction through the courts, and sued the women for ten 
thousand dollars damages to his business. The decision went 
against him ; and the result was very favorable to the ladies 
as it arrested the attention of the entire country. The crusade 
spirit spread rapidly and was soon universal. It became the 
theme of pulpit argument, prayer-meeting exhortations, and 
leaders in newspapers. " The reports of the progress of the 
movement were given," says the Rev. W. II. Daniels, of 
Chicago, " with as much minuteness and display as if it had 
been an exciting political campaign." 

Dr. Lewis lectured in Washington Court House, an adjoin- 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEBAJTOE. 515 

ing town to Hillsboro, in the same vein somewhat, on temper- 
ance. 

The following day an immense company met in the church, 
and an earnest meeting was held. Mrs. M. G. Carpenter, a 
noble woman and devoted Christian, who was chosen as the 
president, drew up an appeal, which was afterwards used in 
many other States as well as in Ohio. 

" The following morning," writes the secretary, Mrs. M. V. 
Ustick, " after an hour of prayer, forty-four women filed 
slowly and solemnly down the aisle and started forth upon 
this strange mission, with fear and trembling, while the male 
portion of the audience remained at the church to pray for the 
success of the new undertaking ; the tolling of the church-bell 
keeping time to the solemn march of the women as they 
wended their way to the first drug-store on the list (the num- 
ber of places within the city limits where intoxicating drinks 
were sold was fourteen, eleven saloons and three drug stores). 
Here, as in every place, they entered singing, every woman 
taking up the sacred strain as she crossed the threshold. 
This was followed by the reading of the appeal and prayer, 
then earnest pleading to desist from their soul-destroying 
traffic, and to sign the dealers' pledge. Thus all the day long, 
going from place to place, without stopping even for dinner 
or lunch, till five o'clock, meeting with no marked success ; 
but invariable courtesy was extended to them. 

"The next day an increased number of women went forth, 
leaving the men in the church in prayer all day long. On this 
day the contest really began, and at the first place the doors 
were found locked. With hearts, full of compassion, the 
women knelt in the snow upon the pavement to plead for the 
Divine influence upon the heart of the liquor-dealer, and there 
held their first street prayer-meeting. 

" The Sabbath was devoted to a union mass meeting. Mon- 
day, December 21, is one long to be remembered in Washing- 
ton as the day upon which occurred the first surrender ever 
made by a liquor-dealer of his stock of liquors of every kind 



516 THE TBUE PATH ; 

and variety to the women in answer to their prayers and en- 
treaties, and by them poured into the street. Nearly a thou- 
sand men, women, and children witnessed the mingling of 
beer, ale, wine, and whisky, as they filled the gutters and were 
drunk up by the earth, while bells were ringing, men and boys 
shouting, and women singing and praying to God, who had 
given the victory. 

"On the fourth day the campaign reached its height; the 
town being filled with visitors from all parts of the country 
and adjoining villages. Another public surrender, and 
another pouring into the street of a larger stock of liquors 
than on the 'previous day, and more intense excitement and 
enthusiam. 

" In eight days all the saloons, eleven in number, had been 
closed, and the three drug stores pledged to sell only on pre- 
scription. 

" Early in the third week the discouraging intelligence came 
that a new man had taken out license to sell liquor in one of the 
deserted saloons, and that he was backed by a whisky-house 
in Cincinnati to the amount of $5,000 to break down this move- 
ment. On Wednesday, the 14th, the whisky was unloaded 
at his room. About forty women were on the ground, and 
followed the liquor in, and remained holding an uninterrupted 
prayer-meeting all day and until eleven o'clock at night. 

" The next day — bitterly cold — was spent in the same place 
and manner, without fire or chairs, two hours of that time the 
women being locked in, while the proprietor was off attending 
a trial. On the following day, the coldest of all the winter of 
1874, the women were locked out, and stood on the street, 
holding religious services all day long. 

" Next morning a tabernacle was built in the street just in 
front of the house, and was occupied for the double purpose 
of vmtching and prayer through the day, but before night the 
sheriff closed the saloon, and the proprietor surrendered. 

" A short time after, on a dying-bed, this four days' liquor- 
dealer sent for some of these women, telling them their songs 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 517 

and prayers had never ceased to ring in his ears, and urging 
them to prayer again in his behalf ; so he passed away." 

When Dr. Lewis visited this town again, a month after the 
commencement of the crusade, fully one thousaud persons met 
him at the train, with a band of music. 

This testimony of the popular feeling proved how at heart, 
all classes, drinkers as well as Christians, rejoiced in the 
destruction of the liquor traffic. 

In the town of Waynesburg, where for upwards of seventy- 
six years there had been open saloons every one surrendered 
to the crusade. 

Xenia is a town of ten thousand people. Here the crusaders 
labored zealously and untiringly for six weeks daily, and some- 
times evenings. In two weeks twenty-five out of forty-seven 
saloons were closed. The following episode is a feature of the 
Xenia movement : 

" One of the keepers, in whose saloon fiddling and dancing 
were carried on during the prayers, was so annoyed at the 
sounds through a broken window-pane that he sent for a 
glazier and had it repaired at once. Wholesale dealers were 
present urging him, as they did others, not to surrender ; they 
should have all the liquors they could sell free of cost. Hour 
after hour the women, keeping guard on three sides of the 
house, continued their singing and praying. At last human 
nature could resist no longer, and amid the ringing of church - 
bells, and the laughing and crying, singing and thanksgiving 
of the people, barrels of beer, whisky, and brandy were 
poured together into the streets. He at once opened a meat 
market, and was well patronized." 

The crusade at this place is graphically told in the following 
sketch, which appeared in Harpers Weekly : 

" Observing two ladies, entering a church (United Presby- 
terian, I believe), I followed them, and found myself in the 
presence of about one thousand people, assembled for prayer, 
and to discuss the subject of intemperance. The pastors of 
the several Protestant churches were there with their people, 



518 THE TKTJE PATH; 

and a feeling of humble dependence upon God, and a deep 
Christian earnestness in the work before them, seemed to pre- 
vail in the heart of every one present. After the adjournment 
of the general meeting, the ladies were called together by Mrs. 
Colonel Low, President of the Ladies' Temperance Associa- 
tion, who, after a few remarks, asked : 

" ' Who will volunteer to lead a visiting party to Klein's 
saloon ? ' 

" After a moment's pause a middle-aged lady arose and 
signified her willingness to do so. She gathered about her 
some eight or ten others, and they started off in double file to 
beard Mr. Klein in his den, and I went with them. 

" On arriving at the door of Mr. Klein's confectionery and 
toy store, without a moment's hesitation they filed boldly in 
and occupied the whole space between the counters, which ran 
along three sides of the room. 

" On the approach of the ladies the family beat a hasty re- 
treat, and barricaded themselves in a very mysterious back 
room, from which issued a very strong odor of highly flavored 
XXX whisky, and the cries of a baby with very strong lungs. 

" When the ladies began to sing, ' Shall We Gather at the 
River ? ' the baby cried a loud and discordant solo, and the 
effect was not at all pleasing. At the conclusion of the hymn 
one of the ladies began a most beautiful and touching prayer. 
No sooner had she commenced, however, than Mrs. Klein, no 
doubt feeling that her premises had been unlawfully invaded, 
shot out from the back room in fiery indignation, her bare 
arms revolving like the sails of a wind-mill, her hair on end, 
and began to pour forth such a volley of abuse upon the ladies 
that it seemed as though she carried a mitrailleuse in her 
mouth. 

"The prayer continued, and so did Mrs. Klein and the 
baby — 

" ' O Lord, we come not in our own strength ' — 

" ' Shust kit out o' mein shop, every one of ye ; ye're a set 
o' hypocrites ; das is zo ! ' — 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEEAISTCE. 519 

" c We would ask Thee to bless this family ; enlighten their 
understanding, that they may be enabled to see the wrong of 
continuing in this unholy traffic ' — 

" ' I don't vant yer brayers. Ef I wants to bray, I ko to 
mein own shursh to bray ; I don't believe in such dings. O, 
yes ! O, yes ! de Lord pless dis family ! Veil, dis family kin 
git along mitout sich brayers ; de Lord don't hear dem ' — 

" ' She will not hear our words ; but Thou, O God, wilt 
cause them to enter her heart as arrows of conviction' — 

u ' Ye're a set o' street valkers. O, I knows dis ting shust 
as veil as not ; it be's like te epysootic ; it koes all around, 
und den koes avay agin ! ' 

" The climax was reached when Klein himself rushed into 
the room, bearing aloft a little parcel, and exclaimed at the 
top of his voice, ' Git out o' mein house immejutly, ye 
hypocrites ! Do ye see dot baper ? das red pepper in dere, 
und I gives you shust five minnits to leave mein shop ; ef ye 
don't I drow dis over ye ! ' Mr. Klein, however, refrained 
from carrying his threat into execution, and the ladies con- 
cluded their visitation in peace. 

"From Mr. Klein's I proceeded at once to Mr. Carroll's 
grocery and provision store. The ladies were kneeling on the 
sidewalk in front of the door, engaged in prayer. Two of the 
party were conversing with Mr. Carroll, who stood in the 
doorway with a newspaper in his hand, and looking very much 
annoyed, as he exclaimed, ' Now, I give ye fair warning. I've 
got the names of ivery one of ye, an' if ye don't lave my 
primises this instant, I'll push ye till the furthest extint of the 
law. I'm not a highwayman or a thafe, that ye should come 
makin' this nonsense in front of my door. 5 

" The ladies pleaded courteously with him ; he was a good- 
hearted fellow, and evidently got worsted in the argument. 
He looked convinced, and yet felt he could not abandon a 
trade which supported him and his family with such ease. 
After remaining for half an hour, the ladies left him, promis- 



520 THE TRUE PATH; ' 

ing to return again and again, until he would yield to their 
prayers." 

Many exciting scenes occurred here, perhaps one of the most 
exciting being the absolute surrender of the worst drinking 
den in the town, which bore the very appropriate appellation, 
" The Shades of Death." After the closing of this vile house 
the other saloons readily " accepted the situation." It is said 
to be now a soniew^hat difficult matter to procure a drink of 
liquor in Xenia. 

At Belief ontaine the crusaders were threatened by an influ- 
ential dealer, that if they persisted in visiting him he would 
defend himself with powder and lead. Nothing daunted, these 
truly brave and noble women gathered before his door to 
pray. The frequenters of his saloon were noisy and rude, and 
did many things to humiliate and drive them off ; but they 
bravely conducted prayers here for a w T eek, at which time the 
saloon-keeper put in an appearance at a mass meeting, signed 
the pledge, and on the next Sunday attended divine worship 
for the first time in more than five years. Another keeper, 
who at first was loud and threatening in his denunciations of. 
interference with his trade, three days after the siege at his 
place, came to a church meeting, signed the pledge, and gave 
evidence of a new heart ! 

The town of Clyde witnessed faithful work. The proprie- 
tor of a prominent saloon here informed the crusaders that 
" he would spill his last drop of blood before they should hold 
service in front of his saloon, and that it and his backyard 
were full of help." The exercises were begun despite this 
threat. He called his rabble" out to hoot and insult them, and 
threw a pail of cold water into the face of the lady praying. 
Without pausing an instant she cried, " O Lord, we are now 
baptized for the work!" The effect was wonderful. Every- 
thing was quiet after that, and the victory complete. The 
saloon-keeper went with them to the church, where the most 
earnest prayers were offered up for him. This throwing of 
water upon the crusaders was repeated in many places, some 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPEEAXCE. 521 

times the water being unclean ; but the work went on steadily, 
easily overcoming such obstacles in its way. 

The movement in Nor walk, Oxford and Warren was 
crowned with complete success. In the first-mentioned place 
the devoted women gave themselves unreservedly to the work 
for weeks, and at one place six pails of dirty water were thrown 
on them. 

The women of Elyria, where there were sixteen saloons, 
were ably seconded by the men, and great work was accom- 
plished. "At the first surrender," we are told, "Mother 
Monteith, a very aged, frail woman, and a most exemplary 
member of the Presbyterian church, sprang upon an empty 
barrel, and prayed before the multitude like one inspired." 

The same authority says that " Mrs. Shear d, of Oxford, a 
woman over seventy years of age, put her washing out before 
daylight that she might go with the praying bands." 

The German saloon-keepers of Bucyrus hired a brass band 
to follow the crusaders about the town ; but they could not 
drown those consecrated voices. 

Three saloon-keepers of Madisonville flooded their side- 
walks with water ; but the neighbors tore up their carpets 
and brought them to cover the pavement where the godly 
women knelt. When three drunken Germans, in Warren, 
passed through the throngs who had gathered to hear the 
praying women, offering free beer from their beer wagons, the 
immense crowd felt the insult and drove them off the street. 

Cincinnati long felt a very strong interest in the crusade 
before it reached its vicinity. The advocates of total absti- 
nence of this city regarded the wave then surging throughout 
the entire State as a thing born of Heaven. A meeting was 
finally held by the ladies, to consider the inauguration of a 
crusade in Cincinnati. The gentlemen followed the good 
example set them, and called a meeting at which the leading 
clergymen of the place, Rev. Drs. Hitchcock and Walden, of 
the Methodist Book Concern, and other Christian laymen, dis- 
cussed the subject in all its lights. A call was issued through 



522 / THE TEUE PATH ; 

the daily newspapers to the women of Cincinnati. The first 
meeting was held on February 6, 1874, in the First 
Presbyterian Church, Mrs. F. Charles Ferguson presiding. 
The work was soon started. Fifteen days later the following 
very interesting notice, describing the progress of the move- 
ment, appeared in the Cincinnati Gazette: 

" The report was yesterday floating about the city that one 
of the worst places in Fulton had hung out the white flag, and 
surrendered to the ladies. Investigation proved the rumor to 
be entirely correct. 

" A band of women, most of whom were residents of the 
first ward, started quite early in the forenoon upon their 
third round of visitation. Among the first places visited was 
the saloon of Dick Manley, on the Front street, two doors west 
of Kemper Lane. From some incidents in their former visits, 
the ladies were led to believe that the proprietor was not 
wholly satisfied with his business, but they were not expecting 
the easy triumph before them. Benches were carefully 
arranged by the conscience-stricken saloonist for his fair visit- 
ors, and devotional exercises were begun. The prayers and 
songs were so earnest, simple, and direct, that at last he could 
stand it no longer. As they were about to sing, 

" My faith looks up to Thee.' 

he broke in with, * Wait a little ; I'll give up.' He then told 
the ladies that his stock was at their disposal, and he would 
himself help pitch the vile stuff into the gutter. 

" About this time the scene began to grow exciting. Sev- 
eral ladies burst into tears. An effort was made to sing, 

" Praise God, from whom all blessings flow,' 

but the voices of the singers refused to give utterance to the 
language of their hearts. Then, when they had somewhat 
recovered themselves, they set to work with beaming counte- 
nances to pour out everything about the premises that could 
moisten the throat or made glad the heart of man. Beer bar- 



f OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 523 

rels were rolled to the gutter, and while their contents were 
gurgling out through the bung-hole, all the bottles on the 
shelves were brought out and dashed upon the pavement. 
After everything had been emptied out, the proprietor 
thought of some fine old Catawba stowed away in the cellar. 
This was soon hunted up and shared the fate of the rest. He 
said he was bound to make a clean thing of it. 

" After the saloon had been pumped thoroughly dry, the 
ladies went to the place adjoining Manley's, where another 
victory was awaiting them. The proprietor of the saloon was 
absent, but his brother, who was in charge, yielded to the 
entreaties of the women, signed the total abstinence pledge, 
and/ locked up the concern forever, as far as he was concerned. 
If his brother wanted to open again when he got back, he 
might do it. The ladies then proceeded to several other 
places, but met with no further apparent success. The gen- 
tlemanly keeper of the Eureka Exchange slammed the door in 
their faces, and retired to an upper room, from which, he 
viewed the proceedings with a sardonic grin. 

" In conversation with our reporter to-night, Mr. Manley 
said he didn't know what he should go into next. He had a 
billiard hall connected with his saloon, and he would carry that 
on until something better offered. He seemed resigned at the loss 
of his stock, and thoroughly glad that he was out of the business. 
The jokes and sneers of his old friends who couldn't see it in 
that light seemed to have no effect upon him. He remarked to 
one of them if he owned all the saloons between there and Col- 
umbia the women might have the whole of them." 

Great work was done here by Mrs. S. K. Leavitt, the wife 
of a clergyman, who was a very successful leader in the move- 
ment, and who afterwards became the President of the Cincin- 
nati Woman's National Christian Temperance Union. This 
lady's description of the crusade in her city is very vivid, and 
we give it at length. She says : 

" I am often asked to tell the story of the crusades in Cin- 
cinnati, but I never can do it. The crusades were something 



524 THE TEUE PATH ; 

to be felt, not to be told. The whole idea of that movement 
was soul-saving. 

" Cincinnati was a hard field, with its three thousand saloons 
and its forty millions of dollars invested in the liquor trade. So 
strong was this interest that merchants did not like to have 
their wives engage in temperance work for fear of bad results 
to their business, and at first we thought we must adopt only 
mild, old-fashioned measures. But at last,. under the baptism 
of the Holy Spirit, we came to the conclusion that the country 
method must be our method, and for eight weeks, about 
seventy strong, we crusaded the streets and saloons after the 
most vigorous fashion. 

" The first place we visited was an elegant sample room. 
As we came near the place one lady in the band remarked — 

" ' I don't know why I am here. I have no onq in my family 
who drinks.' But just as we came to the saloon she caught 
sight of one of her own sons in there, wiping his moustache, 
evidently just after a drink. The mother who did not dream 
that her sons were tipplers looked pale as death. She was the 
first one to offer prayer in that place, and ever since she has 
been active in the temperance work. 

" Sometimes the saloon-keepers would invite us in, and 
sometimes they would back us out. One German beer-seller, 
in view of our probable visit, obtained an old cannon, and 
loading it to the muzzle,, he drew it up before his saloon, and 
swore he would shoot if those c temperance fanatics ' tried to 
crusade him. That verv saloon was down in the route of ona 
of our bands, and when we came to it and saw the ugly- 
looking machine, and the Dutchman standing by with a lighted 
torch in his hand, we were a little surprised, as you can well 
believe. But we did not hesitate long ; we drew up in line 
right in front of the cannon and began to sing, and pretty soon 
the old fellow threw down the match and began to cry, declar- 
ing that though he Was not a bit afraid of dem voomans, 
he could not shtand dot singinV 

" Good Friday of 1874 was one of our great days. We had 




MOTHER STEWART, THE LEADER OF THE "WOMEN'S MOVEMENT; 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 525 

a band of about a hundred and twenty of the best ladies in 
Cincinnati that day. We started out from the prayer-meeting 
at one of the churches/ as our custom was, with orders to take 
a certain line of march and visit certain saloons. Our route 
was to go down to the esplanade and hold a prayer-meeting on 
the flag-stones near the fountain. 

" When we came in sight of the place we saw a crowd of 
roughs, evidently waiting for us, the leader of which had 
sworn a terrible oath that no woman should set her foot on the 
esplanade that day. I did not know of it at the time, so we 
marched right along, two by two, up to where the crowd were 
trying to block up our path, and, going up to this leader, a big 
burly fellow, half full of whisky, I said : — 

" * My brother, you must help us to keep order. We are 
going to hold a prayer-meeting.' 

" A great change seemed to come over him all at once, for 
he said : 

" ' Break ranks, boys ! These women are coming through !' 

" The crowd obeyed him, and allowed us to pass to our 
station, formed in hollow square around us, and the leader 
detailed some of them to act as a special police to keep order 
while we held our meeting, saying, 'We are going to see these 
ladies through.' 

"We began to sing 'Rock of Ages ;' next 'Jesus the Water 
of Life will Give,' and then a dear Quaker lady began to ex- 
hort those roughs to give their hearts to God. We forgot all 
about temperance, and held a real gospel meeting, which made 
a profound impression on the crowd. 

" Our orders were, ' South to Esplanade — hold thirty min- 
utes' prayer-meeting — then back to church ;' but we heard 
that the church was full already, so we found out another 
where we could go, and the crowd of roughs went with us. 

" At the church appeals were made to them to seek Christ, 
and when those were asked to raise their hands who wanted to 
be Christians, many hands went up ; then we asked who would 
come forward for prayers, and the very first man who came 



526 THE TKUE PATH ; 

was the ring-leader of the gang ; and the poor fellow was 
saved then and there. 

"Another young man came forward, and immediately a 
woman, seeing him, came and knelt by him, put her arms 
about him, and began to pray for him — her son. 

" You see the crusades were breaking in so on the liquor 
business that the dealers and manufacturers were alarmed. 
Liquors sent out to dealers in the country began to be sent 
back again because there was no sale for them, so the liquor 
men besought the mayor to try and stop the work of the 
women ! They made a mistake there : it was not the work of 
the women but the work of God that troubled them so. 

" You know we were arrested and had to go to jail. Just 
think of it ! 

"There was a sidewalk ordinance which forbade the 
obstruction of the streets, and under that we were arrested, 
though we were careful to use only the two feet in width that 
the law allowed us when we stood in front of a saloon and 
sung at it, and quoted texts of Scripture at it, and knelt down 
and prayed against it and for the souls of those who kept it. 

"The seven policemen who were detailed to arrest us were 
crying like whipped children : but. they had to do it, and we, 
like good, law-abiding citizens, submitted, and went in pro- 
cession to prison — forty-three of us — singing all the way. 

" One of your Chicago clergymen, Rev. Dr. Fowler, was in 
Cincinnati at the time, and he went to prison with us, to see 
that no harm came to us, and helped us in our work among 
the poor wretched prisoners we found there. 

" We were released after about four hours. Bail was offered 
us, but we refused it, on the ground that we had done nothing 
against the law, and those who arrested us should take the 
full responsibility of their outrageous act. The crusade 
prayer-meetings were kept up after that at the churches, and 
by and by we took the rooms at 200 Vine street, where we 
held a constant crusade. The aggregate attendance at our 
Women's temperance prayer-meeting for the last six months 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 527 

was 14,009 ; of these 2,932 signed the temperance pledge, and 
sought the prayers of Christians in their behalf. A good 
many of them — as many as fifty, I am sure — have been soundly 
converted." . 

A guild of saloon-keepers was formed in Cincinnati who 
were pledged not to surrender to the ladies ; but the saloon- 
keepers found that the prayer power was mightier than they, 
and " could get at a man, regardless of the question of 
whether his saloon be opened or closed." During the Cincin- 
nati crusade a temperance organ was published entitled The 
New Temperance JEra, and was considered the best temper- 
ance sheet ever published. Under the date of July 4, 1874, it 
makes the following statement : 

" There are three thousand women at work, ably supported 
by a large number of gentlemen. Over one thousand young 
ladies have promised not to use wine, and to discourage its 
use among young gentlemen. There are in the city of Cleve- 
land ten hotels whose proprietors have come forward and, an- 
nounced their intention of keeping strictly temperance houses. 

"There are now a thousand indictments for violations of 
the Adair law, and five hundred cases under the nuisance sec- 
tion, which the temperance lawyers are conducting without fees. 

"One wealthy gentleman has pledged himself to give, if 
necessary, $100,000 to close up the saloons, and some of the 
dealers say they are not afraid of the prayers of the women, 
but ar& very much afraid of the $100,000. Ten thousand 
names are recorded upon the citizens' pledge ; many saloons 
have been closed ; many of the owners of buildings have 
served upon their tenants notices to quit at an early day. 
Our wholesale establishments have found their business verv 
greatly reduced, and our saloon-keepers utter piteous lamen- 
tations on account of the hard times that have so suddenly 
come upon them." 

The towns of Gallipolis, Sabina, New Lexington, New 
Vienna, Waynesville, New Holland, and others were crusaded 
with signal success by the ladies. 



528 THE TEUE PATH; 

One old toper, who was annoyed at the closing of the 
saloons in his own town, declared that he would hereafter do 
all his trading at Wilmington, but on reaching that place he 
found the crusaders had been there before him, and it, too, 
was closed against whisky. 

A correspondent of the New York Observer, at Tiffin, says : 

"The assessors and gaugers of the ninth district of Ohio 
tell us that, as a result of the temperance movement, not one 
of the eight distilleries of the district is now in operation. 
The sale of all kinds of liquors, beer, and ale has fallen off 
more than sixty per cent." 

The crusaders at Delaware, the seat of the Ohio Wesleyan 
University were met with the proposition to compromise on 
beer ; but they refused the offer, and went on bravely with 
their work until upwards of nineteen saloons had surrendered, 
leaving only four in existence. 

The result of a campaign of twelve days at Mount Vernon, 
Ohio, was the closing of twenty-three drinking places. . 

The following description of the good work at this point is 
taken from the New York Tribune : " At the hotel I found 
the landlord actually bragging that he had been the first man 
to surrender. A commercial traveller was just leaving the 
hotel, with a bundle of samples under his arm, when the land- 
lord said to him, i You need not go out at this time of day, 
sir ; you won't find a respectable store in town open now ; it's 
the prayer hour; every day between nine and ten 'o'clock 
everybody goes to prayer-meeting. 

" From the hotel I went to the Episcopal church. Few. 
places of amusement are ever more crowded. Every seat was 
filled, and men and women thronged the vestibule, and stood 
in the aisles, while the inclosure within the altar-rail was 
occupied by clergymen, every denomination appearing to be 
represented. Nobody presided ; the meeting seemed to run 
itself. A man rose to speak, giving an account of what had 
been done at another town ; then a woman said, ' Let us pray,' 
and the congregation followed her with devout air in an ■ im- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 529 

passioned appeal to the throne of grace. When the prayer 
was ended some one began to sing : — 

" 'Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord; 

He is tramping out the vintage where his grapes of wrath are stored,' " 

the congregation joining mightily in the chorus, 

"'Glory, glory, halleluiah! 
Our God is marching on.' " 

Then more prayers and more exhortations, until a young 
man suddenly entered the. house, and pushed his way through 
the crowded aisle to the pulpit. 

" ' Ladies,' said he, ' I have come to tell you that I cannot 
hold out any longer ; I shall not sell any more liquor, and I 
want to sign the pledge.' 

" Some in the audience forgot where they were, and began 
to cheer ; others shouted, 6 Amen,' and then, almost by one 
impulse, the congregation arose and sang the doxology which 
everybody can sing : — 

"'Praise God, from whom all blessings flow." 1 

Before the echo of the song had died away the sexton had 
hold of the bell-rope, and the good news was pealed forth 
that another stronghold of the enemy had fallen. The bells of 
the other churches took up the tidings, and for half an 
hour they chimed away, until it seemed as if everybody in 
Mount Vernon and vicinity must been aroused. 

" The prayer-meeting over, the women sallied out in two 
sections, each under an appointed leader, to visit the few 
liquor-stores that still held out. There was several inches of 
snow on the ground, and the weather was intensely cold, but 
there was no shrinking from duty." 

The Cleveland crusade was very successful. Here over five 
thousand women signed a pledge neither to use intoxicants nor 
offer them as a beverage. The question was constantly asked, 



530 THE TRUE PATH ; 

" Will the women of a conservative city of 150,000 go upon the 
streets as a praying band ? " The liquor-dealers said : " Send 
committees of two or three and we will talk with them, but 
coming in a body to pray with us brands our business as dis- 
reputable." 

A band of heroic women, many of them the wives of 
prominent clergymen, were led by Mrs. W. A. Ingham, a 
woman of wonderful energy, courage and devotion, who took 
up the cross, saying : " Here I am ; the Lord's will be done ! " 

The following sketch of the Cleveland movement was 
written by Mrs. Sarah K. Bolton, of Ohio, a lady of rare 
abilities, and who is a prominent figure in the annals of 
temperance : 

" On the third day of the street work, the whisky and beer 
interest seemed to have awakened to a full consciousness of 
the situation. Drinkers, dealers, and roughs gathered in large 
numbers on the streets to wait for the praying women. A 
mob, headed by an organization of brewers, rushed upon them, 
kicking them, striking them with their fists, and hitting them 
with brick-bats. The women were locked in a store 
awtiy from the infuriated mob, who, by the arrival of more 
police, were dispersed, cursing and yelling as they went. The 
next day, taking their lives in their hands, a larger company 
of women went out, and somewhat similar scenes were re- 
enacted. Meantime, public meetings, called in the churches, 
were so crowded that standing room could not be found. The 
clergy as one man came to the front. Business men left their 
stores and shops, ministers their studies, and a thousand manly 
men went out to defend the praying women. Foremost among 
these was Rev. A. J. F. Behrends, and some others, whom 
Cleveland is proud to honor. The military companies were 
ordered to be in readiness, resting on their arms, the police 
force was increased, and the liquor interest soon made to feel 
that the city was not under its control. The mob never again 
tried its power. For three months, with scarcely a day's ex- 
ception, the praying bands, sometimes with twenty in each, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 531 

working in various parts of the city, sometimes with five 
hundred, quietly and silently, two by two, forming a pro- 
cession over a quarter of a mile in length, followed by scores 
in carriages who could not bear the long walks, went from 
saloon to saloon, holding services where the proprietors were 
willing, and in warehouses which were thrown open to them, 
or in vacant lots near by when they were unwilling. Those 
were wonderful days, when a city was baptized by continuous 
prayer ; when women, forgetting the luxury and ease of their 
homes, went down to these places of desolation to save those 
for whom Christ died. Men took off their hats and often 
wept as the long processions went by. Little children gathered 
close to the singers, and, catching the words, sang them 
months after in their dingy hovels. Haggard women bent 
their heads as they murmured, with unutterable sadness, 
" You've come too late to save my boy, or my husband ! " 
Many saloon-keepers gave up the business, and never resumed 
it. Many who had lost all hope because of the appetite that 
bound them heard with joy from women's lips the glad tidings 
of freedom in Christ, and accepted the liberty of the Gospel. 
During these three months 1,100 saloons were visited again 
and again, besides numerous hotels, wholesale houses, drug 
stores, club-houses, etc. 

" Meantime, the prominent men of the city, determined to 
enforce the laws, and using the plan of the Government in 
ferreting out crime, employed detectives, and soon obtained 
nine hundred indictments against liquor-sellers, and cases for 
wronged women and children, under the Adair law, covering 
$150,000. 

" In the lower part of the city, by the river docks, where 
there were many saloons, one dealer, who at first refused ad- 
mittance to the band, touched by the kind spirit of the leader, 
relented and sent for them to return. He was the son of a 
clergyman, finely educated, and had been successful in business 
till he wnt into liquor-dealing ; then the descent was rapid. 
Some days after he signed the pledge, and gave up his busi- 



532 THE TKUE PATH; 

ness. Among those who were drinking and playing cards in 
the saloon was a prematurely white-haired man to whom the 
saloon-keeper had given shelter. Southern-born, a gentleman 
in manner, a member of the press for many years, becoming 
addicted to drinking, then gambling, he left his wife and child 
and became a wanderer. His wife had spent years searching 
for him, and at last had given him up as dead." 

" A hymn, dear to his mother, sung by the band, touched 
his heart, and he joined in the singing. He was invited to the 
house of a generous citzen, where, after days of wrestling in 
prayer, he found peace. A letter was written to the wife, 
who fainted when she read it. She hurried to meet him, and 
at this house, in the presence of a hundred guests, the worn 
wedding-ring was again placed upon her finger, and, with the 
prayers and singing of the band, the marriage service again 
repeated." The saloon above mentioned was transformed into 
a Friendly Inn, of which there are now six in the city, where, 
and at some other points Christian women hold over twenty 
Gospel temperance meetings weekly, and great numbers have 
been converted." 

Noble women, in almost every town of the State, without 
an idea of reward or praise, with but one thought and purpose 
— that of killing the liquor trade — unmindful of their health, 
in snow and rain, in cold and heat, gave their undivided time, 
strength and attention to the good cause. Some of them gave 
up life in the work. "The curse of Ohio," says Mrs. Bolton, 
"had been the allowing of the'sale of wine and beer by law, 
while a penalty was affixed to the sale of all distilled liquors. 
Of course the latter were almost universally sold under the 
name of the former, and the women of the crusade have 
learned, if they did not know it before, that beer and wine are 
as deadly in their effects as whisky and brandy. A law had 
been passed, called the" MeConnellsville ordinance, giving 
towns the right to prohibit the sale of wine and beer if the 
majority so elected. The interest incident to the crusade 
immediately called attention to this fact. Every town made 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 533 

strenuous efforts to pass the law. In some, Christian women 
worked all day at the polls. In others, all-day prayer-meet- 
ings were held by them for God's blessing on the right. In 
scores of places this ordinance was carried, and for the first 
time in their history, the beer-shops were suppressed." 

The temperance women of Zanesville presented. to the coun- 
cil a petition eighty feet long, with five thousand signatures, 
for the passage of this law. It was granted and the number 
of shops reduced at once from one hundred and eighteen to 
fifty-seven. For fully seven months nobody could get a glass 
of beer except by stealth. The internal revenue showed there 
was a decrease in sales of liquor of forty-seven per cent. » 

The pen with which the ordinance was signed by the presi- 
dent of the council was sold in Akron at auctioai for two hun- 
dred and fifty-two dollars. 

The State had been deeply stirred ; but it had not been put 
to any test. The test soon came. Twenty years before, a 
clause had been put in the constitution forbidding any license 
for the sale of intoxicating drinks. A new constitution was 
now to be laid before the people, and they were again to be 
asked whether they would have a license or not. The oppos- 
ing party were aroused to an intense pitch of excitement. 
They sent documents in favor of a license into every hamlet. 
"They lobbied," says our authority, "and wrote, and spoke, 
and gave liberally for this, which, if carried, would show, said 
they, ' that the crusade was a failure.' " 

The women gathered together in a large body, and went to 
where the commissioners were assembled, and beseeched them 
not to bring it before the people, as they had already once 
decided the question. They refused ; and then every woman 
knew her duty. In every town and school district, unused 
as they were to speaking in public, they spoke against the 
license law. They obtained tracts from the National Tem- 
perance Publication Society, and scattered them broadcast. 
The decision was to be made on August 18, when the 
farmers could with difficulty leave their work. All day the 



534 THE TEUE PATH; 

women labored at the polls, furnishing lunches and talking 
earnestly against a law that should multiply saloons on every 
street. They prayed and worked nobly. Every liquor man 
was at his post. The State was never so aroused, or so excited 
over any issue. When the votes were counted, and the new 
constitution and its license clause found to be buried past hope 
of resurrection, one glad anthem of praise went up from a 
great host of weary women. The long fight was ended ; and 
the ladies came off victorious. 

Perhaps no one has done so much good, or worked more 
zealously in any cause than " Mother " Stewart in the crusade, 
and perhaps no name is better known than hers. The best 
description we have of her is that which appeared in the Good 
Temrplars' Watchword, published in London, while she was 
visiting England on a mission of temperance. It is as fol- 
lows : 

'•Mrs. Stewart, so extensively known in the United States as 
1 Mother Stewart, 5 is a lady of nearly sixty years of age, of 
medium stature. As indicated by the portrait, she has silvery 
hair, which is arranged in soft, glossy ringlets, in the manner 
known by American ladies as the " Martha Washington " 
style. Her hazel eyes, although no longer young, are very 
expressive, and flash out thoughts before they find utterance 
in words, alternately indicating sympathy with suffering, and 
indignation at wrong and injustice, and constantly recurring 
humor. The impression she gives and leaves with all who 
come in contact with her is that she is a genial, kind-hearted 
woman, who believes in the righteousness of her cause, and is 
emphatically in earnest in her work. 

Mrs. Stewart was born in Ohio, U. S., and was in early life 
led to consecrate herself to the service of Christ. It will be 
readily understood that a lady of her temperament, with 
strong religious convictions of the duty of personal service, 
would not be slow to find opportunity for active work. In the 
church of her choice, of which she has been a member for 
forty-four years, she has ever been recognized as an efficient 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 535 

laborer. During the civil war, while her husband and sons 
were in the service of their country, she was busily engaged in 
procuring and sending supplies to the sick and wounded. 

" Her attention had for years been directed to the great curse 
of intemperance, and she had been in the habit of delivering 
lectures on that subject as opportunity offered. And so it 
would seem that while God was moving the hearts and arous- 
ing the consciences of his people in various Christian lands to 
action against the common enemy, he was also training and 
preparing Mother Stewart for the important part she was 
called to ' take in the great uprising, and especially in the 
' whisky war' in her own State, a movement which spread 
like fire in the broad prairies from State to State, and the fame 
of which has reached to all parts of the civilized world. 

" We do not propose, in this brief notice, to enter into the 
details of the crusade, or to give a full account of the work. 
Thisj we trust, many of our people will have the privilege of 
hearing from Mother Stewart herself, as she has come to our 
shores intending to spend a few months with us ; "not," as 
she herself states, "to % recommend to her sisters here that 
peculiar form of work," for she believes that that form has 
had its use and has passed ; and, while there were, undoubtedly, 
many mistakes, for it is human to err, she is firmly convinced 
that " God has looked upon the work, has pronounced it good, 
and has sealed up the book. But out of that form, and the 
awakening of Christians, has grown an interest and opportuni- 
ties everywhere for work, and she comes to her sisters to 
counsel, to encourage, and, if possible, to enlist a still greater 
number of Christian women in the cause. 

" We heartily welcome such a woman to our shores, and trust 
she may succeed in arousing increased attention to the curse 
we £.re all pledged, by God's help, to remove. It is scarcely 
for ns to say what means shall be most successful. It is our 
duty to accept the aid of all helpers, and especially of one who 
has exerted so mighty an influence in a far-off land. We trust 
that our brethren every where will open the way for our earn- 



536 THE TRUE PATH; 

est and devoted sister ; that they will aid and cheer her in her 
work ; and that God may abundantly bless her labors among 
us." 

Another writer has this pen and ink sketch :— 

"Along with many others, I passed through a steady down- 
fall of London moisture to see and. hear Mother Stewart, at 
the rooms of the National Temperance League. I had gazed 
with interest on the artist's presentment of her form and feat- 
ures in the c Watchword ;' the expressive steadfast glance of 
the eyes looking from under the well-arched, well-marked 
brows, the finely-chiseled, firmly-closed lips, with a perfect 
' Cupid's bow, 5 the full and rounded, almost dimpled chin, and 
the ample but proportionate breadth of the lower part of the 
face, as well as the wide proportions of the chest and bust, so 
far as displayed in the picture. 

" I looked again, and noted the c artist's lines ' — lines that 
would have delighted Hogarth — of the eyebrows, eyelids, nos- 
trils and chin ; the ear, the throat, the shoulder .and the one 
raised hand. Looking once more, I noticed the width, height 
and prominence of portions of the braid — as exhibited by the 
shape of the ' ivory walls ' surrounding it — the large projection 
forward from the ear, the full development of the forehead 
generally, and particularly the width and fullness of the por- 
tions over and between the organs of vision, and the height of 
the upper part of the head. The general impression conveyed 
was that of quick, clear and searching perceptions, ready 
■ mother wit,' breadth and force of character, constancy, hope- 
fulness, dauntless courage, faith, and perseverance to the end, 
be it sweet or bitter. 

" Such were the mental and moral qualities suggested to me 
by a perusal of the artist's lights and shadows. These also led 
me to expect in Mother, Stewart a large physique / indeed, 
something masculine was suggested by the proportions of the 
chest, and still more so by the upper lip and lower jaw. 

" In these anticipations, however, I was disappointed, but 
agreeably so. Mother Stewart is not of more than average 




D. L. MOODY. 



OR,. GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 539 

height, and at first sight she strikes one as small in figure and 
in features. The lower part of the face is spare, the complex- 
ion fresh. 

"Her voice is sweet, and, though not loud, is clear, and 
sometimes penetrating. She goes straight to the point, speak- 
ing with all the artlessness, originality, and verve of one full 
of the subject and charged with a mighty mission, yet talking 
naturally, and expressing just such thoughts, narrating such 
facts, and making such appeals, as occur at the moment, 
couched in racy but idiomatic Saxon. 

" One's heart goes out to Mother Stewart, standing there, 
pleading for help in her righteous cause. If not large in 
frame, she has a spirit powerful enough to rouse and inoculate 
a vast legion of supporters ; her eye flashes, her ardent feel- 
ings and aspirations heighten the color in her face ; now and 
then the voice will falter just a little, to prove how womanly 
she is. And O, how well — though it may be briefly — she 
pleads ! Hearing and reading her speeches are very different. 
A report fails to convey the native raciness, the indefinable 
charm of her manner, though, in reading, our words seem to 
come back to us from over the sea, and we can trace how 
strongly the Northern Saxon elements of our language flour- 
ish in congenial soil, as we look at those sharp, short terms, 
terse, brief and pungent. 

"As I listened to the speech, there were running in my 
mind, now the dry, keen, searching east wind, pinching and 
penetrating what it touched ; now the breadth and grandeur 
of the prairies ;. and now the mighty rolling rivers, flowing on 
in resistless volume to their destined waters. Something of 
these was suggested by the subject, and something by its ex- 
ponent. With an eagle eye the watchful speaker seems to see 
the battle-field where intemperance strews the ground with 
wounded victims, sees where help is to be had, and swoops 
down ' upon -the plague-spots with infallible certitude ; she 
brings up her corps of angelic praying women, and trusts for 
the success of their crusade, thinking nothing of the appear- 



540 THE TKUE PATH; 

ance of the thing, but only of the precious souls to be saved 
from tumbling into hell." 

The crusade rapidly spread into other States. In Indiana, 
where the Baxter law is in force, the movement was eminently 
successful. This law provides that no man may keep a saloon, 
or sell any intoxicating liquors, until he has secured the signa- 
ture of the majority of the voters in his ward and township to 
a petition asking for such a saloon. He is required to furnish 
bondsmen who shall be liable for any. violation of the law on 
his part, and furthermore, the premises on which the liquor is 
sold is liable. In securing these petitions, of course all kinds 
of . frauds were brought into play. The* directories of other 
towns, grave-stones and other foreign resources were used as 
names for these petitions. 

The crusade began in Shelbyville. The best women in the 
city took the matter in hand, and pushed it. The saloon- 
keepers, becoming tired of their regular visits, resolved to 
intimidate them, and sent a deputy marshal to warn them that 
should they visit them again, they and their 'husbands would 
be sued for damaging their trade. The ladies wrote these 
men a friendly letter, in which they said " it was their busi- 
ness, destroying property, sapping health, etc., that was doing 
the damage." Two pledges were extensively circulated — one 
asking those already on dealers' applications to remove their 
names, and others asking them never to sign a petition for a 
license. The visiting of saloons was continuous, and surrenders 
to earnest prayers made many a heart glad in Indiana as well 
as in Ohio. Valparaiso and Terre Haute were crusaded, and 
intense enthusiasm aroused in both these places for the cause. 
Indianapolis, the capital, became the center of earnest, stead- 
fast labor. On the day appointed here for the reception of 
petitions for the keeping of saloons, the crusaders, with their 
lawyers, were present to point out the lying devices of the 
liquor men to the commissioners, who, in view of the evidences 
of fraud presented, refused twenty out of twenty-four applica- 
tions for license. The efforts made by the crusaders to pre- 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 541 

vent the granting of licenses were wonderful. Mrs. Gov. 
Wallace, Auretta Hoyt and a large number of other ladies 
held meetings in every school district, monster petitions of 
seventy -five thousand names were obtained, the children 
banded together, and organizations sprang from the remotest 
corner of the State to the other. Indiana truly became conse- 
crated ground. 

Illinois next felt the great movement. In the cities of 
Springfield, Bloomington, Shelbyville, El Paso, Jacksonville 
and others, the crusade went on under the auspices of both 
law and Gospel. In many instances, temperance and religion 
went along together in sweet companionship. At Urbana, 
the seat of the State Agricultural College, at Farmer's City, 
and at Belvidere, the local elections, which turned on the 
question of total abstinence, resulted in a victory for " no 
license." 

" In Chicago, the women obtained the names of sixty thou- 
sand persons, to a petition pleading for the closing of the 
saloons on the Sabbath, and presented it to the city council. 
Their prayer was refused, and, insulted and bruised by a rab- 
ble of five thousand of the lowest of the city, unrestrained by 
the police force, they went back to the church to pray for 
their enemies. A daily temperance prayer-meeting was at 
once opened in Farwell Hall, and gospel temperance meetings 
held in various parts of the city. Under the leadership of 
Miss Francis E. Willard, one of the most able and successful 
workers of the country, great and wonderful good was accom- 
plished. That first insult of the liquor traffic to Chicago 
Christian women, bore its legitimate fruit. Clergy and laity, 
tired of the rule of the drunkards and dishonest men, rose in 
righteous indignation, and effected a revolution. 

The Rev. W. H. Daniels, the clever author of The Temper- 
ance Jleform, says he " recollects, with distinguished pleasure, 
the first Sabbath evening temperance meeting held under the 
auspices of this committee, at the Park Avenue Methodist 
Episcopal Church, of which he was at that time pastor. The 



542 THE TETTE PATH ; 

ladies had arranged a programme, but none of them were pub- 
lic speakers, and as the hour for the commencement of the 
exercises came dangerously near, they began to seek for assist- 
ance in the services. " No," was the reply, " this is your meet- 
ing, and the Lord evidently means that you shall conduct it." 

" One of the ladies, Mrs. Louise S. Rounds, whose name has 
become so familiar in connection with the work of the 
Woman's Christian Temperance Union in Illinois, was ap- 
pointed chairman, tvhose duty it was to introduce the speakers 
after a brief address of her own. Some temperance hymns 
had been written for this occasion, and practiced by the Park 
Avenue Church choir, to be sung to such tunes as " Home, 
sweet Home," " Auld Lang Syne," " John Brown's Body," and 
others, which the non-church-going people who were expected 
on that occasion were certain to be able to sing. 

After the address by the chairman, a lady rose whose hus- 
band had but recently signed the pledge, and in consequence 
of which benediction she had devoted herself to the work of 
the crusade. Such an experience as this could not fail to tell. 
Following her came Miss Lucia F. Kimball, now well known 
to our temperance periodical literature, and as the leader and 
organizer of the Christian Temperance Union work among the 
children and young people, who that night made her first pub- 
lic speech on temperance. At the close of the addresses a 
couple of pledges *at the head of large sheets of blank paper 
were produced, and persons were invited forward to sign, the 
choir meanwhile singing the temperance songs. Two long 
lines of people were presently formed in the aisles, and for 
half an hour they pressed eargerly forward to affix their signa- 
tures to the pledge ; some of them with the marks of their 
evil habits upon them ; one or two evidently just from the. 
saloon. 

" The success of this meeting gave great encouragement to 
the crusaders, and, one after another, the Methodist, Congre- 
gational, and Presbyterian Churches were opened for the cru- 
sade services. A small sheet was printed, both in English and 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 543 

German, containing upon one page some statistics of the fear- 
ful results of the liquor traffic, and upon the other, an appeal 
to the licensed saloon-keepers to give up their traffic, which 
produces such misery. The city was districted, and ladies 
appointed to go out, two by two, to visit saloons and persuade 
their keepers. 

Rockf ord took the lead of all other cities by bringing up her 
boys to swear eternal hatred to all that could intoxicate. 

At Bloomington the crusade assumed the form of a 
municipal election on the question ®f license or no license, 
The leader of this movement was Mrs. Jenny Fowler Willing, 
a lady well known and beloved in her church, in which she was 
a licensed preacher, and ari admirable and powerful one. She 
had been recently elected to the Professorship of English 
Literature in the Illinois Wesley an University, and when the 
crusading spirit appeared among the Bloomington ladies, a 
Woman's Temperance Union was formed, of which she was 
elected president. The following description by Dr. W. H. 
Daniels graphically shows how nobly these noble ladies worked 
in the cause : 

" By the time the spring election came the temperance 
sentiment had risen to such strength and dignity that the city 
council ordered the question to*be submitted to the voters, 
c License ' or c No License.' The temperance workers rested 
a little from their meetings so as to gather strength for this 
grand onslaught, and then about two weeks before the election 
there was a crowding on of all force to call the attention of 
the people to the great iniquity. The election was to occur on 
Monday, and the day before, the pastors, at the request .of the 
Woman's Temperance Union, preached on the subject. The 
evening was given to mass meetings. Everybody who had the 
gift of tongues was pressed into the service ; many who had 
been timid and conservative were set to presiding or speech- 
making ; some who had been on the wrong side found them- 
selves pushed in a corner where they were obliged to declare 
for or against the great philanthropy. Everybody was 



544 THE TIttJE PATH ; 

antonished at the amount of temperance interest suddenly 
evolved. 

" The next morning, a raw, drizzling April day, the ladies 
met at the First Methodist Episcopal Church, and after much 
prayer it was voted almost unanimously to go to the polls and 
work for the " No License " ticket. As usual, there were all 
manner of bogus tickets in the field — all sorts of cheats with 
which bad men shape the laws while good men are too busy 
with their own affairs to ferret them out. The ladies secured 
the tickets, found out the frauds, cut off the mischievous part 
of the bad tickets, and then all day, in relays of twos and 
threes, they went to the voting places, and put the right 
tickets into the hands of the voters. Mrs. Willing stayed at 
the church, engineering the affair, with the help of a young 
lawyer who had had a hand before in political affairs. 

"As the day passed and the issue seemed doubtful, the 
pastors of the churches, the professors of the University, some 
clerical students who could speak German, and the Roman 
Catholic priest — all were summoned to the polls to help the 
ladies. 

" The outcome, to the astonishment of the of all concerned, 
was a complete victory for 'No License.' Bloomington was 
the largest city of the Union that was carriecL by the Crusade. 
The next summer Mrs. Willing was nominated by the prohibi- 
tion party for the State Superintendency of Public Instruction, 
a candidacy which she found it necessary to decline. At the 
first Chautauqua Sunday-school Assembly this lady's temper- 
ance address and subsequent efforts resulted in the organiza- 
tion of the Woman's National Temperance Union. Mrs. 
Willing was the president, and Mrs. Emily Huntington Miller 
was secretary, of this preliminary meeting. 

" In October, 1873, Mrs. Willing was elected president of the 
Woman's Christian Temperance Union, of Illinois. 

" In November, at the National Convention, held at Cleve- 
land, Mrs. Willing was chosen to preside. The crusaders were 
present in force, and many of them were full of fervor and 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEEAKCE. 545 

zeal, and with decided opinions in regard to the policy of the 
new organization ; but with quietness and calmness the pre- 
siding officer held the meeting during the three days of 
earnest debate, with a wholesome strictness, to parliamentary- 
decorum. The next year the paper of the Woman's National 
Christian Temperance Union was planned and launched, 
under the care of the publishing committee. Mrs. Willing 
was chosen editor, and piloted the paper through the crit- 
ical period of its establishment, after which it fell into other 
hands. 

" In November, 1876, she was appointed by Mr. Moody to the 
chairmanship of the ladies' work in connection with the 
evangelistic services held at the Chicago Tabernacle. Large 
numbers of women were sent out from the meeting to visit 
among the poor and outcast, to distribute invitations to the 
tabernacle services. After the close of the Moody meetings 
she went to Greencastle, Indiana, for a revival service of 
twenty-one days, which resulted in the conversion of about 
three hundred, and the hewing of a large number into the 
higher Christian life. 

" That was followed by a meeting of twenty-one clays in 
Indianapolis, with large success ; all the Methodist Episcopal 
churches uniting in services held at Meridian street, Roberts 
Park and Trinity churches." 

The crusade commenced in Wisconsin was inaugurated at 
Janesville, July, 1873. A petition, numerously signed, and 
addressed to the common council, asking that no more licenses 
be granted, was presented by a deputation of Christian 
women, led by Mrs. D. A. Beale and Miss Lavinia Goodell, the 
daughter of the Rev. William Goodell, the well-known anti- 
slavery and temperance reformer. 

Hydrants were set up by the women of Racine to supply 
pure water to the city. Both this place and Milwaukee have 
reading and lunch-rooms in successful operation. At Ripon, 
the seat of Ripon College, the ' women visited the saloons 



546 THE TKUE PATH ; 

praying and singing, and when forbidden to go in, held 
meetings on the streets. 

At Whitewater, they succeeded in driving out the saloons, 
and no licenses were granted. Book-shelves were placed in 
the depots, to be supplied with temperance tracts and papers, 
that the travelling public may have their attention called to 
the important subject. 

Michigan was regarded as already an old temperance battle- 
ground, where the right had repeatedly triumphed ; so the 
great work done here was hailed with delighted acclaims from 
the mighty army of total abstainers. The crusade began in 
Adrian. The following account given by Mrs. J. M. Geddes, 
one of the strongest temperance advocates, faithfully describes 
the movement in this place. 

"When these crusades started in Ohio, and reports of them 
reached us in the papers, something came to me and said, 
' That is to be your work in Adrian.' The idea was especially 
shocking to me. It seemed as if I never could go out as the 
crusaders were doing in Ohio and elsewhere, and hold meetings 
in saloons and on the streets ; but as I read of the progress of 
the crusade the impression repeated itself over and over 
again, i This is to be your work, 5 until I became ' actually 
frightened. I could not sleep at night for the dread of this 
duty, and gave over reading about the crusades, with the hope 
of freeing my mind from the disagreeable impression. Wlien 
the week of prayer came that year I did not attend a single 
meeting, lest I should hear something about the crusades. 

" Other ladies in the community began to be interested in 
the work, as the news of the movement began to occupy a 
large place in the public press, and several of them called upon 
me to ask me to attend a temperance prayer-meeting in 
Adrian. I gave various excuses for refusing the invitation, and 
for three weeks did not go near the meeting, during which 
time I was so wrought upon by a sense of my duty that I had 
no rest in my soul; day nor night. Once I took up a paper, 
and found a notice of Miss Smiley's meetings in Toledo, and 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 547 

went away and stayed as long as possible, to keep out of the 
way of the temperance work at home. On my return, my 
husband inquired if I were intending to have anything to do 
with those crusades, whose measures, he thought, were not 
well chosen, but calculated to lower the dignity of the ladies 
who engaged in them. I said nothing of my convictions ; but 
the news kept getting more exciting, and the impression of 
my duty kept growing stronger, until at last it seemed to come 
to me as a question of life and death : c Will you do this work, 
or will you not ? You must decide once for all. 5 

" At this I was so alarmed that I went to the temperance 
prayer-meeting, which I had shunned all along, and found 
that a band of crusaders had already been appointed. 

"It appeared that the business men of Adrian had been 
urging the women forward in this movement, saying to them, 
■ The saloon-keepers expect you ; why do you not go V Pub- 
lic sentiment had already taken sides with the movement ; 
crowded temperance meetings were held in the churches, and 
it may be truly said that the public conscience and judgment 
among the business men of Adrian actually drove the women 
into the work of the crusade. 

" At that first meeting three praying bands were appointed, 
under three leaders ; and what was my amazement to hear my 
own name read as the leader of Band No. 1. 

" The time appointed was two o'clock in the afternoon. It 
was too late for me then to go home to dinner, so I went with 
a friend. On my way back to the church I met my husband, 
who said to me, 

" ' I hear you have been appointed to go with a committee 

to the House. I would not go there first, for it has 

been given out that the house has invited the ladies by way of 
breaking the force of their visit.' 

" This good advice, which also showed the partial conversion 
of my husband to the movement, was followed ; the plan of 
the afternoon's work was changed. The three clubs united in 
one, and started out in solemn procession, two by two, from 



548 THE TETTE PATH ; 

the church, which was left full of people, to pray while we 
went out to the war. As leader of ' Band No. 1,' the leader- 
ship of this first crusade in our State fell upon me. We 
marched along the street for half a mile, to the miserable hotel 
we were first to visit, and as we went along I issued what you 
may call General Order No. 1 : 

" ' Speak not one word, but pray all the time.' 

■"It seemed asif the day of judgment were come, so great 
was the solemnity that pervaded our company, w r hile the faces 
of the men who lined the path on either side seemed to indi- 
cate a sense of the divinely appointed work upon which we 
had started out. Even the crowds of boys in the streets were 
orderly and respectful. 

" The first place we visited was the old Sammons Hotel, the 
landlord of which was an old man, eighty years of age — since 
dead — who had not been inside of a church, or heard a prayer 
or a hymn, for many and many a year. When we entered his 
place he trembled like a leaf in the wind. We talked to him 
kindly, and he offered all sorts of excuses for the business, 
which he admitted to be an evil one. There were people pres- 
ent, drinking, but he ordered that silence should be main- 
tained while we sang our hymns and offered prayer, the heavy 
cross of offering the first prayer of the Michigan crusades fall- 
ing upon me. 

" Never in all my life before did prayer seem to bring me 
nearer to God. There was a special baptism of power and 
love given to me while I prayed in that low drinking place. 
From that moment all hesitancy and fear departed, and I felt 
that I was committed to the crusade for life. Ladles have 
often told me that the word c saloon ' had lost its disagreeable 
sound to them after they had passed through a similar experi- 
ence ; and the prayer-meetings which we held in bar-rooms 
and drinking dens were among the most interesting and 
spiritual religious services in which it was ever our privilege 
to enGfacce. Never have we felt ourselves nearer heaven than 
when kneeling on the floor of a drinking-house, praying for 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. " 549 

the keeper, and for the success of the woman's crusade. It 
may seem strange that a saloon should have any sacred associa- 
tions in the mind of any human being ; but then, you know, 
this sacredness was only to those who went there, not to drink, 
but to pray. 

" We had at that time a prohibitory law, which had been 
standing on the statute books some eighteen or nineteen years, 
and under it all the saloons and drinking-places in Adrian 
were shut up so closely that for six weeks there was no open 
drinking in the town. During those six weeks the sum of 
fifty dollars covered all the expenses of the criminal business 
of the city. 

"The whole community was pervaded with a spirit of 
religious temperance enthusiasm ; and from Adrian the move- 
ment spread, until the whole State was alive with crusaders. 

"But in an evil day pride began to creep in. We had 
done great things ; we had won a great victory. Certain 
ambitious ones began to take a little glory to themselves, 
and insisted upon carrying on the movement begun under 
the Gospel by the help of the appliances of the law. We 
had shut up all the front doors of the drinking places, 
and now it was proposed to shut up all the back doors, 
so that there could be no private drinking ; and for this 
purpose it was proposed to bring detectives from Chicago, 
who should watch for evidences of drinking on the sly, 
and thus bring prosecutions against the places that were 
still secretly selling liquor. A good many of us, who had been 
more interested in praying than in prosecution, opposed this 
new movement ; but it was advocated with so much spirit 
that, rather than have a division in our ranks, we yielded a 
reluctant consent. Detectives were brought from Chicago, 
who hunted up evidence of secret liquor-selling, and on this 
evidence legal action was brought against the offenders. The 
lawsuits brought on anger and ill-feeling ; and whenever you 
get angry your praying is done. With the beginning of this 
law movement the religious work fell off, and the good that 



550 THE TRUE PATH; 

was confidently expected to be accomplished by legal means 
was never realized. We did, indeed, gain our cases before the 
courts, but our cases before the court of Heaven seemed to 
languish ; and, what was more, some of those who had not 
joined in the praying crusades, and who had been most active 
in advocating the legal one, fell away from their interest in 
the cause when difficulties began to thicken, and the lawsuits 
were left at last on the praying women's hands. 

"We had some curious experience in those days. There 
were some places where we were received courteously, and 
others which we were forbidden to enter. There was one 
place in particular from which We had been turned away that 
we were determined to visit. So, starting out with a band of 
crusaders, at an unusual hour of the afternoon, the first two of 
the procession reached the- place somewhat in advance of the 
others, and entered almost before the keeper knew w T e were 
coming. But when he looked out and saw the procession he 
locked the door against us, making prisoners of the tw r o leaders 
of our band. This, of course, looked serious, but we determ- 
ined on no account to abandon those who had been taken 
captive by the enemy. So we gathered around the place, and 
began to sing and pray on the sidewalk, waiting until the 
keeper of the saloon should release his captives. The prayer- 
meeting being over and the door still fast, w r e held a speaking 
meeting ; relating our experiences and cheering one another 
in the work. In the meantime quite a company of gentlemen 
had gathered around, and, seeing that we were besieging the 
place with prayer and song and temperance discourses, and 
had been at it long enough to be weary, they kindly brought 
out chairs and benches, and we continued our meeting w T ith 
much comfort, except that we were anxious for our sisters, 
who were inside. 

" Night came on, and still the prisoners were not released. 
Then our husbands and brothers and sons went away and 
brought us hot coffee and sandwiches, and we, thus further 
refreshed, went on with the singing and praying and speaking. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 551 

A great crowd of people gathered, and some of them, seeing 
the situation, cheered us on, and seemed to be deeply im- 
pressed with the religious exercises that we were engaged in. 
About ten o'clock at night the keeper of the saloon released 
the captive crusaders, who had improved their captivity by 
exhorting him to repentance, being in nowise molested, but 
becoming somewhat anxious at their long detention. This 
saloon presently closed for good. The keeper of it took 
his departure, and the place was used for another line of 
business. 

" Our last crusading was on a place kept by a Dutchwoman, 
who attempted to use similar tactics upon the whole company, 
locking them in and abusing them with sharp words, and what 
was worse, keeping them in the dark as night came on ; shut- 
ting up the place so that they might be suffocated with bad 
air, to which was also added the fumes from the pipes of the 
company of men, who in the next room were endeavoring to 
c smoke them out,' as they say when they haze a freshman at 
college. The ladies were indeed in danger of violence, and it 
was ten o'clock at night before they were rescued from the 
captivity of the old Dutchwoman and her customers, who had 
worked themselves up to such a state of fury that for a 
while it was doubtful whether murder would not come of it. 

"Like all other excitements, even in a good cause, the interest 
in the crusades died away, but there was left the organization 
known as the Women's Christian Temperance Union, which, 
through all discouragements, has maintained itself, and has 
now a healthy and active existence. Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, 
California and Oregon entered into the. crusade spirit, and 
were in a short space of time staunch advocates of total ab- 
stinence." 

At Fort Scott, Kansas, a liquor dealer advertised a free 
lunch, and the praying band brought twenty-one ragged and 
hungry children of drunkards to partake of it. 

At Oakland, California, when the election was held under 
the local option law, booths were erected at the polls and 



552 THE TRUE PATH ; 

bouquets furnished all no-license voters. From sun to sun the 
brave women worked with hand and voice, and, when the 
votes were counted, the whole country rang with praises of the 
noble band who had saved the city. Thay were the first who 
dared set the example of working at an election, upon which 
such vital interests depended, and over which they had so 
earnestly prayed. 

Maryland and some of the other Southern States were active 
in the good cause. Massachusetts, although generally the 
foremost state in reforms, hesitated somewhat at first about 
adopting the Ohio plan, but a noble company embraced it in 
Worcester, and carried it out with no little success. The 
work was continued here some time, soon spreading all over 
the State, and was continued with grand and wonderful results 
of good. 

Pennsylvania was too near to Ohio, not to feel the enthusi- 
asm of that State, and from the very first was in favor of the 
reform. The women of Pittsburgh, led by Mrs. Judge Black, 
gained the sympathy and interest of the entire country by their 
arrest and imprisonment in a common jail, for praying upon 
the streets. This action only added fuel to the ilames. In no 
city has the crusade received such support and favor from 
the public at large as in the " Smoky City." The work was 
pushed earnestly and steadily. Coffee-house, reading-room, 
juvenile society of five hundred, street-corner meetings, 
mothers' meetings, relief for drunkards' families, etc., etc. 
were carried on in this place with great and never-flagging 
zeal. 

In Philadelphia the work was a grand one. The ladies 
held earnest mass meetings, petitioned the common council for 
the closing of the saloons on Sunday, and finally accomplished 
their desire. Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, the president of the 
Woman's National Temperance Union, aided by a goodly hosl 
of other noble women, kept the cause uppermost in the heart* 
and minds of the people, not only of her own city and State^ 
but throughout the entire country. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEEA1STCE. 553 

New York was not backward in the crusade. The spirit of 
this great movement was kindled and kept alive by the 
National Temperance Publication Society, whose indefatigable 
secretary, J. N. Stearns, did much to keep this light thus 
kindled, burning before the whole world. Mass meetings were 
held, addressed by Drs. Cuyler, Hepworth, Boole, Steele and 
many others. To the latter, the Rev. W. C. Steele, the 
women were greatly indebted for collecting and preserving in 
book-form the only printed records of the " Woman's Temper- 
ance movement." A committee was appointed of two women 
from each of the forty churches. They began their work first, 
as in the other places, by distributing pledges. Mrs. Helen E. 
Brown was the president of the wave, and under her guidance 
over one thousand visits were made to drinking-saloons, and 
meetings were held repeatedly on Water street, at Hooper 
Home, Magdalen Asylum, Bellevue Hospital, Sunday-schools, 
Industrial schools, etc., etc., and daily at Association Hall. 

The crusades in Syracuse, Buffalo, Auburn and other towns 
were highly successful — "work" some one aptly remarks, 
"that will tell for eternity." Praying women all over the 
State of New York visited the excise boards, and urged them 
not to grant licenses, and in hundreds of instances were 
crowned with remarkable success. No women in the world 
have done, are doing more for the blessed cause of total ab- 
stinence to-day than those of New York State. 

The crusade was not confined alone to the New World, but 
had life in other lands on the other side of the foaming ocean. 
England, Scotland, India, Japan, China even, learned through 
brave Christian women the terrors of the liquor traffic. A 
young man, dying in an Ohio hospital, when asked by the 
praying band if he had signed the pledge, said : " Oh, yes ! I 
signed it eight months ago for the temperance women over in 
China, who came to pray as you have come, and I have kept it." 

Brooklyn felt the crusade spirit as strongly as any city in 
the country, and its history of temperance work is most inter- 
esting. The winter of 1873-4 saw the faint streaks of light 



554 THE TRUE PATH ; 

that were, after a while, to shine so grandly, lighting up the 
whole community. A Union Bible-class of ladies, which held 
weekly afternoon sessions in the Friends' meeting-house, first 
caught the crusade spirit. The glad tidings from Ohio had 
reached them, and aroused them to a pitch of intense excite- 
ment. Some of these ladies belonged to the most wealthy and 
elegant circles of society, and had always been accustomed to 
the use of wine among their other luxuries. 

The crusade in the West, however, opened their eyes to the 
fearful evils attending the use of intoxicants. They began to 
pray in secret for the success of their Western sisters. They 
finally confessed their feelings and unusual experience to one 
another. 

The result of this was a prayer-meeting where, after devout 
and earnest supplication to the seat of mercy, they were led to 
consecrate themselves to God, though they had not the most 
remote idea that they should ever be called upon to do so 
strange a thing as to go into a saloon and pray. " I always 
thought," said one of these ladies, " that drunkenness was to be 
found only among low people, and, such being the case, it was a 
matter that did not concern us ; but since we began this work 
I have found sad and heart-breaking proofs that in the highest 
walks of life, as well as in the lowest, this great curse and 
crime is terribly common. 

" At one of our temperance prayer-meetings a young man 
came to me and said : * I am lost, I am lost ! pray for me !' 

" I looked at him in surprise. He was a son of one of the 
leading families of Brooklyn. 

" c Why do you not ask your mother to pray for you ?' 

" ' Ah !' said he, with indescribable sadness, ' I never heard 
my mother pray.' 

" The broken-hearted wife of the pastor of a leading church 
once came to beg me to join her in prayer for her wretched 
husband, who had been drinking for years in secret, and who 
at that time had been lying for three days in a state of sense- 
less intoxication. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKANCE. 555 

" I had always drank wine at my own table, and at the 
fashionable hotels at watering-places, but I began to see that 
a Christian had no business to set such a dangerous example." 

The result of this prayer-meeting was a call for a woman's 
temperance meeting at the hall of Young Men's Christian As- 
sociation, which, to the great surprise of the ladies, was at- 
tended by a vast assemblage. 

Hundreds were obliged to be turned away, there being no 
room to accommodate them. An organization was formed, 
and Mrs. Mary C. Johnson unanimously elected as President, 
and. Miss E. W. Greenwood, as Secretary. Under the direction 
of the latter lady Gospel temperance prayer-meetings were in- 
augurated, and carried on with great success. These temper- 
ance prayer-meetings became a perfect wonder. Large crowds 
flocked to hear the ladies, victims of strong drink presented 
themselves for prayer of their own accord, and the whole city 
became intensely interested in the movement. The real cru- 
sading, however, did not commence here until a saloon-keeper 
sent an invitation to the temperance women to hold a meeting 
in his saloon. 

A spectator of those times said about this departure in the 
good work : This came like a shock to those eloquent 
and orderly people, who felt that even to speak or pray in a 
public meeting in the house of the Lord was a wide departure 
from the lessons of a lifetime, and almost unpardonable in a 
lady, unless in most exceptional cases, of which the temper- 
ance prayer-meeting was the only one they had ever met ; but 
to go down to a house of the devil and bear this unaccustomed 
cross was too much for their sort of human nature to bear. 
But all at once the memory of that first meeting came over 
them. " We promised to obey the Lord without reserve," 
said the president, " and we dare not falter now." 

A committee of twelve ladies, led by Mrs. Johnson, marched 
to the saloon, and, drawing up in a circle in the room with a 
card-table for a reading-desk, and a crowd of some three 
thousand persons, of every description of low and vicious life, 



550 THE TRUE PATH ; 

for a congregation, they held their first crusade prayer-meeting 
in Charles Meyer's gambling-house and saloon. 

" Once when I was sick, a number of years ago," says Mrs. 
Johnson, " a strange vision came to me, of a vast crowd of 
people, in whose presence I was standing — a wild, wicked 
crowd; of all ages and in all grades of sin and misery ; and 
just before me was a precipice, toward w r hich they were moving, 
and over which *hey were falling. I w r as thought to be even 
then in the very arms of death. I heard the watchers say, 
'She cannot live but a few hours;' but from that vision I 
knew that I was to recover, and that God had some work in 
store for me. I had vainly tried, over and over again, to 
find the meaning of this vision, but until I began this crusade 
work my life had been all the time among lilies and roses ; 
now it began to be among thorns and briars. 

"From the time we entered the saloon till near the end of 
the meeting, I did not dare look up, being oppressed with a 
sense of the strangeness of our situation ; but after a dear 
Quaker sister had finished speaking I ventured to lift my eyes, 
and — there they were : the very crowd I had seen in that vision 
years and years ago. I knew them at once, and understood 
the meaning of the precipice over which they were falling." 

She says of the memorable address she made on that 
occasion, which so many have praised in the highest terrns : 
"I could speak then, for I saw r the precipice and they did not." 
Thirteen men at the close of the meeting signed the pledge 
of their own accord ; and a few days afterwards the proprietor 
closed his saloon, gave up the business, and gave the key of 
the place to the crusaders. 

This was the beginning of the saloon-visiting, which, unlike 
the record of other places, has been steadily and persistently 
kept going. A Reformed Men's Meeting was organized ; and 
a Friendly Inn, a Temperance Restaurant, established. 

"The following is a faithful description of Mrs. Johnson: 
" Mrs. Mary C. Johnson, of Brooklyn, Recording Secretary, a 
woman of the best social standing, a blonde in features and a 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 557 

lady in manner, the daughter of a public-spirited Christian 
banker, has given the past three years most heartily to the 
temperance cause. After many years of gayety and worldli- 
ness she became actively engaged in Sunday-school work, and 
had charge of three hundred little girls. She had also been 
president of the Home for the Friendless, and was the first 
contributor to the infant department of the ' Sunday-school 
Times.' 9 She is president of the Woman's Temperance Union 
of Brooklyn, where over one thousand saloons have been 
closed during the past year, and where she is greatly beloved 
by all classes. Until the temperance crusade her work was 
emphatically for women. She was led into this latter work 
because she believed it a call from God to save souls. She has 
labored abroad most effectively, having spoken in one hundred 
and twenty-one drawing-rooms by private invitation, and to 
London audiences of three thousand. Her father was a warm 
friend of the family of Elizabeth Fry, and the mantle of the 
gifted and beautiful preacher in the prisons of Northern 
Europe seems to have fallen upon her." 

The following incidents of the different crusades will be 
perused with interest : 

A letter from Boston to the Corresponding Secretary of the 
Cincinnati Woman's National Christian Temperance Union 
contains the following : — 

"Last week there came into our temperance prayer-meeting, 
on North street, a young man who said he once drank whisky 
to excess. He acquired the habit by taking whisky and 
quinine for fever and ague. 

"'In the streets of Cincinnati,' he said, 'I found myself 
alone, sick, and without friends. Wandering about the city, I 
came upon a band of women kneeling before a saloon and 
praying. I stopped to listen, and never before had I heard 
such prayers. 

" ' I was sent to the hospital, and there I thought of it all, 
and now I trust in God as my strength and my Redeemer. I 
have given up whisky forever. 



558 THE TEUE PATH ; 

" M never saw one of those ladies to know them ; I do not 
even now know their names, but shall throughout all eternity- 
bless God for their prayers/ When asked to write his name 
upon the pledge book, he said, ' I will if you wish ; my pledge 
is stronger than that ; it is with Jesus.' 

" Is not this word of the Lord true ? — ' They that sow in tears 
shall reap in joy. He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing 
precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, 
bringing his sheaves with him.' " 

Mrs. Leavitt, of Cincinnati, relates the following : — 

One of the Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
in Kentucky, was held in Louisville some months ago. During 
its session there was a ladies' meeting in the lecture-room of 
the church, in the interests of the Woman's Foreign Missionary 
Society. Soon after the opening of the exercises two men 
came into the room and quietly took their seats. Just before 
the meeting closed one of them arose and asked permission to 
speak. 

Said he : "I can't express my feelings this afternoon. I've 
been f op two years hungry to hear a woman pray. I've been 
a very wicked man. I was a drunkard for fifteen years. I 
neglected my family ; my children died ; then my poor wife's 
heart broke, and the town buried her. Two years ago I found 
myself in Cincinnati. I hadn't drawn a sober breath in 
months ; I spent my days in saloons, my nights in the station- 
house. I didn't care for myself, and nobody cared for me. 

" One day a band of the praying temperance women came 
into a saloon where a lot of us were drinking. Standing in 
front of the counter, they sang, 

' There is a fountain filled with blood ' — 

a hymn my mother used to sing ; then they all kneeled, and 
one after another prayed. O, I can never forget those prayers 
as long as I live. I couldn't keep the tears back. For the 
first time in years there came into my heart a great desire to 
be a man once more. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 559 



" When they left the saloon I followed them to the church. 
There I signed the pledge, and took my first step toward a 
better life. As I wrote my name, my hand trembling and 
unsteady, a lady said to me, ' Jesus can help you ; O, can't you 
trust him, brother?' 

"I could not say one word ; but all that afternoon I kept 
saying to myself : 

"'She called me "brother." I'm somebody's brother — I'm 
somebody's brother!'* At the close of the meeting she came 
to me, her eyes full of tears, and said : 

" i All this afternoon I've been praying for you. O, you are 
in great danger ! Jesus wants you, and Satan wants you ; 
which are you going to serve ?' Then I broke down, all to 
pieces, and I sobbed out, c I do want Jesus to help me ; but O, 
I am such a wretched sinner, there can be no help for me ! 
I've sinned away my day of grace. I've murdered my wife. 
I've murdered my children. I've broken my poor old mother's 
heart. I've committed every crime ; there can be no mercy 
for me. I don't deserve mercy ; but O, my heart is break- 
ing !' 

" Somehow I went right on my knees. All I could say was, 
i Have mercy on me, Lord — have mercy on me, Lord !' 

" How those women talked to me ! They told me Jesus 
didn't come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance ; 
that he would save even to the uttermost ; then I laid hold of 
Christ, and peace came. 

" I can never tell you how happy I was then, and have been 
ever since. I want to tell every body what a dear Saviour I 
have found. I want every one to love Jesus. If any of you 
live in Cincinnati, tell the temperance women I've been true ; 
tell them God has given me over fifty souls nere ; glory be to 
his blessed name ! 

" Sometimes I feel I must go back. I went on my knees to 
thank those dear women for dragging me from the mouth of 
hell, and leading me to Christ. O, dear friends, it was woman's 
prayers and woman's tears that saved me ; that's why I came 



560 THE TKUE PATH ; 

into your meeting. I thought perhaps you had met to pray 
for the drunkard. I'm glad you are praying for the heathen ; 
but O, don't forget the heathen at home ! There are drinking 
men in Louisville to-day by the hundred, hungry for the bread 
of life ; they don't know it — but women's prayers can save 
them — they'll all go to hell if something isn't done. Won't 
you go to them and tell them, ' No drunkard can enter heaven V 
They'll believe you ; they will reform if you'll plead with them. 
Every drunkard's heart can be touched. All are not hardened ; 
they have many bitter hours ; they get down-hearted, and 
then Satan leads them off. 

" O, pray for me, and pray for the drunkards of our city 
before you go." 

Dr. Lewis explains his theory and plan for drunkards, 
which the women of the crusade followed, in one of his lec- 
tures, as follows : "There have been various methods proposed 
for lifting the black pall that hangs above us, shutting out the 
face of God from so many souls. I asked a man the other 
day, on a railway train, if he had heard anything about the 
woman's temperance movement. 

" ' Of course I have. I haven't heard of anything else.' 

" i Well, my friend, w T hat do you think of the method ?' 

" c Don't think much of it; don't believe anything can be 
done for drunkards in this world.' 

" Another reformer was of the opinion ( that it would be 
well to charge $5 for every drink ;' and another was 6 for 
having a law passed that liquor-dealers should not make more 
than five per cent, on their investments,' while another, who 
might almost be called fanatical in his advocacy of temper- 
ance, declared : ' If a man gets drunk once, send him to State 
prison ! if he get drunk three times, hang him !' 

" Now, there are two forms of combating the enemy, by 
prohibition, and by moral suasion ; and I am afraid that there 
will be division in the temperance ranks between the advo- 
cates of these two methods. The friends of prohibition have 
always been true and faithful ; but, notwithstanding all that 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 561 



has been said on the advantage of prohibition laws, it is my 
belief that in the Eastern States prohibitory laws have been a 
positive harm. 

" The Massachusetts law is the most perfect of its kind ; 
yet there are 3,500 open dram-shops in Boston, selling liquor 
without attempt at cover or concealment. The trouble is, 
that prohibitory laws are passed before public sentiment has 
reached such an elevation as to make them a success, and 
when one is not enforced it is a stumbling-block in the way of 
reform. 

"Enthusiastic advocates of prohibition will display great 
energy until the law is passed ; then they fold up their hands, 
and say, Let her work. But she does not always work. IsTow, 
I suppose every body will say, Why don't they enforce the 
law ? The difficulty is that the law is in advance of local 
public sentiment, and cannot be enforced any more than any 
other law could be which was ahead of the conscience of the 
j:>eople. Therefore I say that a prohibitory law is injurious to 
the cause of temperance when it diverts the attention from 
those moral and religious forces which alone can prepare the 
way for it. 

"I hope the time will come, as it has come in Ohio, when 
prohibitory laws can be made successful, and then I will be 
in favor of them, but not before. In Mount Vernon, Ohio, 
for instance, the people have been asking their council to 
grant them a prohibitory ordinance, which the laws of the 
State permit, and for twenty years they have asked in vain ; 
but the other night fifty men and thirty women went down to 
the City Hall, and in forty minutes, the law was passed, 
signed, and put in force. Public sentiment had attained the 
requisite pitch ; and it is as easy there now to punish liquor- 
selling as it is to punish horse-stealing. 

" About twenty years ago I suggested the use of prayer- 
meetings in rum-shops, and it was tried in some sixty places, 
in Illinois, Michigan, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts ; 



562 THE TRUE PATH; 

but only now has the plan found congenial soil and taken root 
in the State of Ohio. 

" Take the town of Washington, for instance. I lectured 
there one evening on this subject, in the Presbyterian church, 
and a committee of three women was appointed to draft an 
appeal to the liquor-dealers, and then a committee of forty 
women was appointed to circulate it, and ask signatures to 
what was called the dealer's pledge. In a few hours the ap- 
peal was ready, and the women started out, forty or fifty 
strong, including wives of clergymen, doctors, lawyers, and 
all the most respectable residents of the town. On reaching 
a saloon kept by a Mr. Smith one of the ladies knocked at the 
door, and said : — 

" ' Have you any objection to the ladies on the sidewalk 
coming in ?' 

" c No objection, certainly ; come right in, ladies.' 

" So they all went in. 

" ' Mr. Smith,' said the leader, c I want to read an appeal to 
you ; it contains nothing offensive.' 

"No objection being made, the appeal was read* 

" Then the leader said : — 

" i Have you any objection to our kneeling down here and 
having prayer?' 

"The man was too much surprised to object, and so all 
those women knelt down on the floor of the saloon, and some 
one led in prayer. 

" After prayer they asked if they might sing, and, consent 
being given, they sang, what has since become the campaign 
song in Ohio, ' Nearer, my God, to Thee !' then, leaving the 
amazed liquor-seller to his reflections, they went to the next, 
and the next, until all the thirteen liquor-sellers were visited 
with petition, prayer, and song. The next day they repeated 
the process. One dealer said, i Look here, I can't stand this 
any longer ; if you won't come again I will stop.' 

" c Wo hope we have done nothing offensive,' said the 
women. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 563 

" c No, no ; but I really can't stand it. I have thirteen bar- 
rels of spirits in my cellar, and if you ladies want to knock in 
the heads of them I will let you do it. 5 

" To this proposition they gladly acceded, and, a time being 
appointed, all the bells in the town began to ring, bringing 
hundreds of people to the scene. With their own hands the 
women brought up the barrels from the cellar, and one of 
them that had suffered most from the liquor traffic seized an 
ax and dashed in the heads, and the liquor ran over the street 
in the wildest enthusiasm ! 

"'Some people say women cannot chop,' remarked a spec- 
tator, * but this woman who knocked in the heads of them 'ere 
barrels seems to be the champion choppist of the town.' 

"Another dealer 'came down,' as the phrase then in vogue 
expressed the closing of the drinking saloons ; and in ten days 
from the time the crusade commenced every saloon was shut 
up, and the proprietors pledged their honor never to open 
again. 

"Just out of town was one Charley Beck, a German, w T ho 
kept a fine lager beer garden, and the women determined to 
visit him. He was in the confidence of some wholesale liquor 
dealers in Cincinnati, who told him they would give him all 
the liquor he could sell in a year if he would break down the 
crusade. 

" When he was visited he said, with much impressiveness : 
1 Go vay, vimmins, go home ; shtay at home, and tend to your 
papies ; vhat for you vants to come to my peer garten ? Dis 
is the blace to trink peer ; ve don't vant no brayer-meetings 
in dis garten.' How T ever, the women quietly led a prayer- 
meeting on his behalf, which, greatly to his surprise, was not 
such a shocking, howling, fanatical utterance, but a supplica- 
tion of the throne of divine grace in his behalf, and in a low 
and gentle manner, as a mother might pray, with her children 
around her, at the family altar. 

" Recognizing this as the last stronghold of the enemy, a 
tent w r as pitched in front of the entrance to the beer garden, 



564 THE TRUE PATH; 

and on it was placed a locomotive head-light, which threw its 
glare full upon the Dutchman's door. The women relieved 
each other every four hours from six o'clock in the morning 
until midnight, singing and praying, reading the Scriptures, 
and keeping account of the persons who went into Charles 
Beck's garden for three weeks ; by which time his business 
was effectually stopped, and poor Beck, seeing that the hope 
of his gains was gone, came mournfully over to the prayer 
tabernacle, and said : ' O vimmins ! I quits, I quits.' 

" Shortly after, a German in a neighboring town thought he 
could do a good business by removing his stock of liquors to 
the town of Washington, thinking that the topers must be 
very thirsty by this time. He was, however, afraid to use 
the railway, so he secretly moved his goods one night in a 
wagon, and the next morning opened out his saloon with the 
expectation of large and immediate profits. In about half an 
hour all the bells of the town began to ring, and the Dutch- 
man thought there must be a fire ; but presently the head of a 
procession of over a hundred women came in sight, and the 
poor fellow was obliged, like the rest, to ■ come down ' and 
surrender unconditionally." 

When asked whether he thought this plan practicable in 
cities, the doctor replied that in Columbus and Dayton meet- 
ings of that sort had been held, which had not succeeded very 
well. 

" Do the men take part in these meetings ?" 

" We try not to have them," said the doctor. " We would 
rather they would keep out. When a man comes up to give 
his opinion he will extend the palm of one hand as an anvil to 
hammer on with the forefinger of the other, and say : ' With 
regard to the archaeological relations and the metaphysical 
proclivities,' etc., etc. The women want none of this. They 
eome to the meeting from their closets of prayer, burning with 
the love of God, and clinging to Him Tor help. They want 
power from on high ; but one of the things they don't want is 
the cool, calculating, speculating theories of the men." 




J£Uou*yVc£&r*L. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. \ 567 



CHAPTER XXVI. 



THE CRUSADE SPIRIT SETTLED AND CRYSTALLIZED IN THE TEM- 
PERANCE UNIONS. — GROWTH AND FULL ORGANIZATION OP 
THE WOMAN'S TEMPERANCE WORK. INCIDENTS AND FIG- 
URES. SKETCHES OF THE LEADERS OF THE WORK. 



The crusade spirit did not gain force by extension ; it 
rather weakened. Those who in singleness of heart, self -con- 
secration and trust in God, had thrown themselves into the 
work, soon came to the conclusion that some other better and 
more orderly way of accomplishing the good they sought, 
must be adopted. If God were indeed with them, if it was 
His will that these myriads of unfortunate souls should be 
rescued in this way, He would guide and help them. He would 
point out the right way in which they should walk to save 
drunkards. They felt assured He was with them. In the 
great calm that followed the rush, excitement, enthusiasm and 
wild confusion of that first movement, they heard the voice of 
God still calling them to the duty that faced them. In the 
darkness the light soon came, and dispelled the shadows. 

Frances E. Willard, the corresponding secretary of the 
Woman's National Temperance Union, says in her article 
in the Centennial Temperance volume : 

" A phenomenon no less remarkable, though certainly much 
less remarked, succeeded the crusade — indeed, is aptly termed 
its "sober second thought." This was the phenomenon of 
organization. The women who went forth by an impulse, 
sudden, irresistible, divine, to pray in the saloons, became 
convinced, as weeks and months passed by, that theirs was to 
be no easily- won victory. The enemy was rich beyond their 



508 THE TRUE PATH,; 

power to comprehend. He had upon his side the majesty of 
law, the trickery of politics, and the leagued strength of that 
almost invincible pair — appetite, avarice. He was persistent, 
too, as fate ; determined to fight it out on that line to the 
last dollar of his enormous treasure-house, and the last ounce 
of his power. But these women of the crusade believed in 
God, and in themselves as among his appointed instruments 
to destroy the rum power in America. They loved Christ's 
cause ; they loved the native land that had been so mindful 
of them ; they loved their sweet and sacred homes ; and so it 
came about that, though they had gone forth only as skir- 
mishers, they soon fell into line of battle ; though they had 
ignorantly hoped to take the enemy by a sudden assault, they 
buckled on tile armor for the long campaign. The Woman's 
Praying Bands, earnest, impetuous, inspired, became the 
Woman's Temperance Unions, firm, patient, persevering. 
The praying bands were without leadership, save that which 
inevitably results from " the survival of the fittest " ; the 
Woman's Unions are regularly officered in the usual way. 
The first wrought their grand pioneer work in sublime in- 
difference to prescribed forms of procedure — " so say we all 
of us " being the spirit of "motions" often made, seconded, 
and carried by the chair, while the assembled women nodded 
their earnest acquiescence ; the second are possessed of good 
strong constitutions (with by-laws annexed), and follow the 
order of business with a dutiful regard to parliamentary 
usage. In the first, women who had never lifted up their 
voices in their own church prayer-meetings stood before 
thousands and " spoke as they were moved " ; in the second, 
these same women, with added experience, and a host of others 
who have since enlisted, impress the public thought and con- 
science by utterances carefully considered. The Praying 
Bands, hoping for immediate victory, pressed their members 
into incessant service ; the Woman's Unions, aware that the 
battle is to be a long one, ask only for such help as can be 
given consistently with other duties. 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPEEAISTCE. 569 

" Enthusiasm— < a God in us ' — enabled the Praying Bands 
to accomplish prodigies ; steady purpose, and the same faith 
which inspired the crusade is conducting the unions to vic- 
tory, distant, but sure. 

"In the spring of 1874, the women who had been engaged 
all winter in crusading, called conventions for consultation in 
their respective States. These were attended by delegates 
chosen by the local praying bands, and from them resulted 
several State organizations, called at first ' State Temperance 
Leagues? This name was, however, soon changed to ' Unions,' 
the latter word better emphasizing the non-sectarian spirit of 
the crusade. 

" Having organized by States, it was natural to confederate 
these societies in a national temperance union of Christian 
women, through which all parts of the great Republic might 
be enlisted against its most insidious foe. In August, 1874, 
the first National Sunday-School Assembly was held at Chau- 
tauqua Lake, near Buffalo, New York. The following circular 
was prepared at that Assembly and sent to women in all parts 
of the country, and was also extensively circulated through 
the press. It is a document of more significance than many a 
political platform conspicuous for its missing plank, or State 
papef celebrated in later annals for c making a promise to the 
ear that it might break it to the hope.' 

" c woman's national temperance league. 

" c During the session of the National Sunday-School Assem- 
bly at Chautauqua Lake, several large and enthusiastic tem- 
perance meetings were held. Many of the most earnest 
workers in the woman's temperance movement from different 
parts of the Union and different denominations of Christians 
were present, and the conviction was general that a more 
favorable opportunity would not soon be presented for taking 
the preliminary steps towards organizing a National League, 
to make permanent the grand vvork of the last few months. 

" c After much deliberation and prayer, a committee of or- 



570 THE TBUE PATH ; 

ganization was appointed, consisting of one lady from each 
State, to interest temperance workers in this effort. A 
national convention was appointed to be held in Cleveland, 
Ohio, during the month of November, the exact date to be 
fixed by the committee of organization. The chairman and 
secretary of the Chautauqua meeting were authorized to issue 
a circular letter, asking the Woman's Temperance Leagues to 
hold conventions for the purpose of electing one woman from 
each Congressional district as a delegate to the Cleveland 
convention. 

" ' It is hardly necessary to remind those who have worked 
so nobly in the grand temperance uprising that in union and 
organization are its success and permanence, and the conse- 
quent redemption of this land from the curse of intemperance. 
In the name of our Master — in behalf of the thousands of 
women who suffer from this terrible evil — we call upon all to 
Unite in an earnest, continued effort to hold the ground already 
won, and move onward together to a complete victory over 
the foes we fight. 

" The ladies already elected members of the Committee of 
Organization are : Mrs. Dr. Ganse, Philadelphia ; Mrs. E. J. 
Knowles, Newark, N. J. ; Mrs. Mattie McClellan Brown, Alli- 
ance, O. ; Mrs. Dr. Steele, Appleton, Wis. ; Mrs. W. D. Bar- 
nett, Hiawatha, Kansas ; Miss Auretta Hoyt, Indianapolis,, 
Indiana ; Mrs. Jennie F. Willing, Bloomington, Illinois ; Mrs. 
Ingham Stanton, Le Roy, N. Y. ; Mrs. Francis Crooks, Balti- 
more, Md. ; Miss Emma Janes, Oakland, Cal. 

" c Jennie F. Willing, Chairman. 

" ' Emily Huntington Miller, 

Secretary of the Chatauqua Meeting? " 



a c 



This convention was held in Cleveland, November 18, 19, 
20, 1874. There were delegates present who represented six- 
teen States. There were active leaders of the crusade among 
its members, " but besides these," says Miss Willard, " there 
were present many thoughtful and gifted women, whose 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 571 

hearts had been stirred by the great movement, though until 
now they had lacked the opportunity to identify themselves 
with it. Mrs. Jennie F. Willing presided over the conven- 
tion, which was one of the most earnest and enthusiastic ever 
held. A constitution was adopted, also a plan of organiza- 
tion intended to reach every hamlet, town and city in the 
land. There was a declaration of principles, of which Christi- 
anity alone could have furnished the animus. An appeal to 
the women of our country was provided for ; another to the 
girls of America ; a third to lands beyond the sea ; a memo- 
rial to Congress was ordered, and a deputation to carry it 
appointed ; a national temperance paper, to be edited and 
published by women, was agreed upon, also a financial plan, 
asking for a cent a week from members ; and last, not least, 
was appointed a special committee on temperance work 
among the children. Four large mass meetings were held 
during the convention, all of them addressed by women. 
Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, of Philadelphia, was elected presi- 
dent ; Miss Frances E. Willard, of Chicago, corresponding 
secretary ; Mrs. Mary C. Johnson, of Brooklyn, recording 
secretary ; Mrs. Mary A. Ingham, of Cleveland, treasurer, 
"with one vice-president from each State represented in the 
convention." 

The spirit of this assembly of workers is clearly shown in 
the closing resolution, which was unanimously adopted : 

" Resolved, That, recognizing the fact that our cause is and 
is to be combated by mighty, determined and relentless forces, 
we will, trusting in Him w T ho is the Prince of Peace, meet 
argument with argument, mis judgment with patience, denun- 
ciation with kindness, and all our difficulties and dangers with 
prayer." 

In her address, a prominent member of this convention 
expressed the deep conviction which prevailed there in the 
following forcible manner : ' 

"Woman is ordained to lead the vanguard of this great 
movement until the American public is borne across the abys- 



572 THE TRUE PATH ; 

mal transition from the superstitious notion that c alcohol is 
food' to the scientific fact that alcohol is poison ; from the 
pusillanimous concession that 'intemperance is a great evil' to 
the responsible conviction that the liquor traffic is a crime." ' 

" In the first year in its history," says Miss Willard, " the 
Woman's National Christian Temperance Union added six 
State organizations to its numbers, including scores of local 
Unions ; sent out copies of its plan of work to all parts of the 
country ; established as its organ a monthly paper called the 
'Woman *s Temperance Union, published by Mrs. Wittenmeyer, 
and edited by Mrs. Willing, with Mrs. Johnson and Miss Wil- 
lard as corresponding editors ; sent a memorial and deputation 
of women to Congress, asking for inquiry and legislation in 
regard to the liquor traffic, having gathered up hundreds of 
thousands of signatures to this memorial through the efforts of 
its local unions ; issued a pamphlet of " Hints and Helps " 
concerning methods of work ; and by these and many other 
means established itself upon a firm footing among the active 
and efficient agencies for the extermination of the liquor traffic. 
Its first annual meeting was held in St. Paul's M. E. Church, 
Cincinnati, November 17, 18, 19, 1875. Delegates from 
twent} T -two State furnished their credentials." 

The following extracts from the very interesting report of 
the corresponding secretary give the details of the work ac- 
complished during the first year : 

FIRST ANNUAL REPORT OF THE CORRESPONDING SECRETARY 
OF THE W. N. C. T. UNION. 

To-day we reach a milestone in our slow but steadfast march 
towards victory. On this sacred battle-ground of the crusade, 
the procession of States pauses for roll-call. In stately Senate 
chamber and on heroic field their dear familiar names, " from 
Maine to California," have thrilled the ears of patriots in the 
glorious days of old. The. hurrying crowd would smile to 
hear it said — if, indeed, the utterance should gain its ear at all 
- that never did the sisterhood of States pass in review on an 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKAETCE. 573 

occasion more full of inspiration and hope than at this quiet 
hour and in this solemn place, where for the sake of cross and 
flag we meet to pray. But history shall yet bear witness that 
the enthusiasm of the prediction has crystallized into the 
blessed fact of its fulfillment. We first call 

MAINE, 

which long ago achieved for its time-honored motto, " I di- 
rect," the proud significance of leading, where the Union yet 
shall follow, into the safe harbor of prohibitory law. On 
August 21, at the second national temperance camp-meeting 
held at Orchard Beach, the women of Maine organized a State 
, union, auxiliary to our own. Much substantial work had al- 
ready been done by local unions in Bangor, Portland, Saco, 
Biddeford, and elsewhere. In a State where the general 
government supplies all the liquors for medical and mechanical 
purposes, where no distilleries are tolerated, and where a pro- 
hibitory law is as thoroughly enforced as are the laws against 
stealing and murder, the work of our unions is to train the 
embryo voters (and companions of voters) in the way they 
should go, and to leaven more and more the lump of public 
sentiment. The State secretary, Miss Gaines, of Saco, writes : 
" I regret exceedingly that we must report at this early stage 
of our existence, when we do not know precisely how we 
stand, as many of our societies are just reorganizing ; there are, 
however, woman's temperance societies in nearly every town 
all through the State of Maine." 

NEW HAMPSHIRE 

organized at Concord one year ago, and held its first annual 
meeting at the same place, October 28. Four auxiliaries were 
reported — at Concord, Manchester, Portsmouth, and Dover. 
"Each of them," writes the corresponding secretary, Mrs. O. 
W. Scott, " was formed through the persistence of a faithful 
few ; but with the reform clubs as allies, and public sentiment 
gradually increasing in their favor, there seems to be some 
encouragement for the future. Still, it must be confessed there 
appears to be but one subject that can thoroughly arouse New 



574 THE TEUE PATH ; 

Hampshire, and that is politics. During a political campaign," 
continues the secretary, "that State can dispose of as much 
rum, create as large a cloud of smoke, and expectorate as 
much tobacco-juice as any other in the Union ; and for years 
the temperance cause has been mixed with politics, kicked back 
and forth like a foot-ball between the two great parties, bought 
and sold and cheated, until it has become in some circles a by- 
word and reproach. In Portsmouth, our principal seaport 
town, the Hon. (?) Frank Jones, Representative in Congress 
from this district, runs a brewery, and was also a representative 
at the c Congress ' of beer-makers. . The possibility of electing 
such a man to office shows a demoralized public sentiment. It 
may be said that all this ought not to affect the formation of 
societies among the women ; but it does. There has been 
some saloon-visiting in one or two towns ; in Manchester there 
are seven hundred children in a juvenile society, and the ladies 
have started a reform club ; in Portsmouth efforts are made 
to help the sailors to reform, and to assist the destitute fam- 
ilies of inebriates. In the Dover Union, just organized, a good 
work is planned." 

VERMONT, 

through the efforts of our indefatigable vice-president, Mrs. 
Havens, held a convention in Montpelier on February 17 last. 
The published announcement assigns these reasons for women's 
work : " The Master's Call," " The Hour's Need," " Christian 
Indifference," "Satan's Persistence." This convention, and 
the annual meeting held in Rutland, September 28, were well 
attended. There are at present ten local unions in the State, 
eight of them auxiliary, and numbering 520 members, besides 
nineteen " individual members," the reason for this latter class 
of membership being to give persons living where there is no 
union an opportunity to identify themselves with the State 
union by indorsing the constitution and paying the annual fee 
into its treasury. Mrs. Havens' report has these words : 
" There has been much prayerf ul thinking done this year upon 
this subject by the women of Vermont. There is, however, a 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 575 

general lamentation that we have not accomplished more, but 
I feel that we are preparing for a successful conflict. You of 
the West are accustomed to such immense territory, you can- 
not have a very correct idea of our small State, with fourteen 
counties, while Illinois has one hundred and four. We are 
learning all the time, and I only wish I could express a tithe 
of what I feel and know of our steady advance in interest, 
that I might encourage others." 

MASSACHUSETTS. 

The Massachusetts Woman's Christian Temperance Union 
was organized in Boston, November 12, 1874. There are 
eighteen local unions, twelve auxiliary to the State. The 
second convention was held at Boston, April 24, 1875, the 
third at Fitchburg, June 10 and 11, 1875, all of which have 
been enthusiastic and profitable. Reports from the local 
unions of their labors and successes are inspiring. There is 
deep consecration to the work, steady courage, and unfaltering 
trust in Him who is the great leader. Juvenile organizations, 
reform clubs, friendly inns— all largely claim attention, with 
cheering results. There are many interesting reports from the 
various unions of Massachusetts, particularly one from Wor- 
cester, where the work began. It has gone on with power. 
There is a large, interesting work among the firemen ; coffee 
is furnished at the time of fires. The saloon-work has been 
carried on by a few ladies ; 250 visits are reported from No- 
vember, 1874, to May, 1875. 

RHODE ISLAND 

organized a State union in January last, and held a second 
meeting in May. There are four auxiliaries, with an aggregate 
membership of 154. The ladies of Providence have had 
weekly prayer-meetings, and have circulated a petition for the 
suppression of the liquor traffic, which received the signatures 
of ten thousand women. A delegation of ladies carried this 
before the Legislature, and the prayer was granted ; but the 
prohibitory law was repealed when the new State officers came 
into power. " So/' writes the vice-president, " the work of 



576 THE TKTTE PATH; 

going over the same ground is left for us, and this we hope 
successfully to accomplish during the winter." Evidently 
"Hope," the motto of "Little Rhody," expresses the spirit of 
its Woman's Temperance Union. 

CONNECTICUT 

has also a State union, with auxiliaries all throughout the 
State. Its ladies have done much to influence elections by 
their prayers and by using the right of petition. "No 
license" has been the decision at repeated elections, as a 
result of the following petition, signed by hundreds of 
women : 
" To the voters of ; 

" We, your sisters, wives, and mothers, earnestly pray you, 
our, brothers, husbands, sons, and legal protectors, to defend 
our hearths and homes from the desolations of the rum 
traffic by voting ' No license.' " 

Remembering how difficult is the first step, and how decis- 
ive is that step when once taken, we congratulate the Union 
on the fact that a beginning has been made in every Eastern 
State. One of our most active workers thus sums up the 
condition of affairs : "The work is all so new, and we are 
naturally so conservative, that it will take time and vigorous 
effort to bring us all out, but I know we shall work well when 
once fairly embarked. I can see a decided improvement 
already, and I well know there are earnest, loving hearts 
enlisted all through New England." 

NEW YORK 

organized a State union, October 14, 1874 — being among the 
earliest in the field. Twenty-six Congressional districts were 
represented at the first meeting. It was agreed to hold a 
State Convention quarterly. The second met at Brooklyn, in 
February ; the third in May, at Buffalo ; the fourth, and first 
annual meeting, at Ilion, in October. The work is to be 
presented to every town and village in the State, during the 
coming year, by Mrs. Swanson, of Brooklyn, a faithful 
worker, appointed, with others, for that purpose. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPEKAltfCE. 577 

Arrangements are made for organizing juvenile unions, 
and several are now in successful operation. Reports were 
received from twenty auxiliaries ; there are thirty-nine already 
organized. Some effort has been made to secure the enforce- 
ment of law, but prayer and moral suasion have been the 
weapons chiefly used. Friendly inns or coffee-rooms have 
been established and are sustained in Brooklyn, Syracuse, 
Rochester, and several other places. Saloon-visiting has been 
carried on more or less in many of the cities and villages. 
Brooklyn has taken the lead in this branch of work, and over 
2,500 saloon visits have been made, and the Bible and tem- 
perance literature freely distributed. In fourteen months 
1,010 saloons have been closed, and 326 saloon-keepers now 
close on the Sabbath day in that city. The daily prayer- 
meetings have been held in different parts of Brooklyn, and 
Gospel temperance-meetings in jails, inebriate asylums, at 
Fort Hamilton, on the receiving-ships, and in private houses. 
New York city has done much. Gospel temperance-meetings 
have been held every Sabbath evening in Water street, and 
daily meetings in the hall of the Young Men's Christian As- 
sociation. Meetings also in Hopper House, the Magdalen 
Asylum, the Tombs, and Bellevue Hospital. Saloon-visiting 
has been kept up, about 1,000 saloons have been visited in the 
past year. It is stated upon good authority that 3,000 have 
closed their doors in New York this year. (For other inter- 
esting detailed accounts, see report of our vice-president, 
Mrs. L. M. Kenyon, of Buffalo, which closes with these words: 
" We women of New York shall hold our standard firm until 
our enemies cannot choose but see it. Petitions will flood 
our Capitol, and communities will feel the work of women 
strong in the faith.") 

NEW JERSEY 

has been prominent in the rescue department of our work, and 
its Gospel temperance meetings and reform clubs have 
brought a blessing to many homes and hearts. The number 
of local auxiliaries is ten. There are, besides, several large 



578 THE TRUE PATH ; 

juvenile unions. All the local unions have weekly prayer- 
meetings, and Newark has sustained a daily prayer-meeting 
for nine months, also a Sabbath-school and a Home for re- 
formed men. In some towns the ladies have held all-day 
prayer-meetings on election day, and in several cases where 
this has been done the elections have been for two years 
carried in favor of "No license." 

PENNSYLVANIA. 

When the vice-president, Mrs. Fanny D. B. Chase, entered 
upon the labors of her office one year ago, she found the 
crusaders at work in the largest cities of the State, and 
nearly thirty societies of women already organized. The 
first State convention was held in Philadelphia in March. In 
connection with this convention, strenuous efforts were made 
to influence the legislators against the repeal of the local 
option law. A delegation from the convention was admitted 
to a hearing before the committee on " Vice and Immorality," 
and also waited upon the governor, to whom an eloquent ap- 
peal was made on behalf of the delegation by Mrs. Witten- 
meyer, urging him to withhold his signature from the bill. 
" Our efforts," says Mrs. Chase, " proved fruitless, and a law 
adopted by two-thirds of the counties of the State, vVith the 
understanding that it should have a fair trial for three years, 
went down within two years after its passage." But defeat 
has evidently been but a spur to still more earnest effort. At 
the second State convention, held on October 10, forty-four 
working and well-established unions were reported. " Be- 
sides these, there are a large number of woman's temperance 
societies under various names, and not auxiliary to the State 
Union, but engaged heartily in the work. The Alliance at 
Pittsburgh reports 100 members, a flourishing coffee-house 
and reading-room, one friendly inn, a juvenile force of 
pledged workers 500 strong, and street-corner meetings every 
week, Sabbath afternoon meetings for mothers, meetings for 
prayer, both adult and juvenile, weekly, semi-weekly, and 
tri- weekly ; a city police specially committed to the watchful 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 579 



care of crusaders, and money equal to all necessities of the 
work. During the severe winter, and the stoppage of manu- 
facturing establishments, the friendly inn located near the 
iron-works proved a charitable institution indeed, many 
drunkards' families securing their entire supplies from this 
source. In the spring a prominent and notorious saloon was 
converted into a temperance coffee-house, carried on by the 
union, the proprietor going into other business. The drink- 
ing-room of the saloon is now a temperance reading-room, 
made as neat and attractive as possible. Men of note in the 
neighborhood come here and pledge themselves, asking secrecy 
until they try their strength to keep the pledge." 

In the union at Philadelphia a special feature seems to be 
the establishment of a Home for inebriate women, and also of 
a Centennial Coffee-House near the Exposition Grounds for 
the workmen now employed, and for temperance visitors the 
coming year. 

Owing to a misunderstanding concerning the financial plan 
of the National Union, the funds reported from this State are 
disproportionate to the amount of work done. At the last 
State Convention this point was fully canvassed, and another 
year will note a better record. The ladies went home from 
this meeting resolved to do more in -every way, having learned 
better how to work. 

So interesting are the detailed reports of unions in Pennsyl- 
vania and New York, it is to be regretted that they cannot be 
given in full. 

DELAWARE 

has held two conventions, and is organized to some extent. 
No details of its work have reached us. 

MARYLAND 

organized for work November 9. There is much temperance 
interest in this State, the local-option law being enforced in 
several of its counties. Baltimore has an enterprising local 
union, a friendly inn, and temperance eating-house. Saloons 
have been visited to some extent, and cottage prayer-meetings 



580 THE TRUE PATH ; 

held with a good attendance. The prominent journals are 
strongly helpful to the ladies' work. 

THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 

has not been unmindful of its unequalled opportunity and 
duty. One hundred women are enrolled as members of its 
Temperance Union. Thousands of dollars have been con- 
tributed to the Holly-Tree inns, which are well patronized. 
The secretary, Mrs. Julia M. Church, writes : " We have 
worked whenever and wherever we have found opportunity, 
looking always to our Father in heaven for guidance and 
direction." 

KENTUCKY 

organized in October, a convention for that purpose being 
held at Covington, where a Woman's Temperance Union has 
been in operation for a year or more. 

OHIO 

is reported by Mrs. E. J. Thompson, of Hillsboro, " cradle of 
the crusade," where the first visits of women to rum-shops 
occurred December 23, 1873 — a memorable day in the annals 
of our Society. This State organization was effected June 17, 
at Springfield. Three State temperance conventions have 
since been held, the work divided into twenty districts, and 
each provided with a vice-president. Most of the vice- 
presidents report their respective organizations, and many of 
them are faithfully working to build up and establish temper- 
ance principles as well as to save the perishing. There is a 
very large number of local auxiliaries, and at least two hun- 
dred friendly inns ; reading-rooms, juvenile societies, and 
young people's leagues are multiplying and becoming a 
power. The anti-license victory of 1874, the success of the 
temperance fair (in Cincinnati), verdicts against liquor- 
sellers, political defeat of men for office who compromise with 
the " curse of curses," and many other " signs of the times," 
are presagers of the " coming victory " in Ohio. First in this 
holy war, may Ohio, by reason of her faith in God, be always 
worthy of her noble record in the past ! 



0E ? GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 581 

INDIANA. 

The report of the corresponding secretary, Miss Auretta 
Hoyt (made on behalf of Mrs. Gov. Wallace, our national 
vice-president), covers sixty-one pages of cap paper. It is a 
splendid setting forth of the varied, faithful, untiring work 
which gives to Indiana so high rank in our national union. 
To one whose heart is in the cause these fresh and cheering 
pages afford delightful reading, and the entire report should 
appear in print, to show the unbelieving how tenacious of life is 
the temperance crusade. Miss Hoyt begins as follows : " It is 
not possible to give names of all the towns in Indiana which, 
caught the impulse of the Woman's Crusade in February and 
March, 1874, and 'sprang to arms.' But out of our ninety-five 
counties, fifty-nine, at least, were sufficiently aroused to show 
results. In some the interest took the form of street and saloon 
work ; in others, of contesting applications for licenses in 
the commissioners' court ; and sometimes the two were com- 
bined. Only the last great day will show all the results of 
the first, but we know that it awakened the public mind, and 
1 set people thinking,' as nothing else could have done. The 
public finger was pointed directly at the dram-shop, and there 
it continues to point, with so much emphasis that liquor sell- 
ing and renting buildings for that purpose are becoming dis- 
reputable in a geometric ratio. As the result of the second 
method, it is ascertained that out of 305 applications for 
permits to sell, 138 were defeated at the March term, 1874. 
The liquor men rallied their forces by the June term, and 
brought their resources in money, political influence, and legal 
ability to bear, and in the mean time many politicians had 
taken the alarm, and the enthusiasm of others had spent itself, 
so that the resisting temperance people found themselves in 
the commissioners' court with so little moral support from the 
community that by degrees the contest was abandoned. It 
was, however, a wonderful opener of eyes to our voters, who 
began to see that laws do not enforce themselves, and to dis- 
cover what unprincipled men they had voted into office 



582 THE TRUE PATH ; 

Their way hedged before them in these directions, the women 
of Indiana, whose courage, faith and devotion, held them to 
the work, began to cast about for new methods and more 
perfect organization, that the work might be peq:>etuated." 
Then followed an account of two State, twenty-nine district, 
and thirty-four county conventions (eight out of thirteen dis- 
tricts being thoroughly organized), resulting in the formation 
of many temperance unions. Of the specific work in each 
one of 207 local auxiliaries, of petitions, and memorials, the 
juvenile work, mass meetings, and all the various departments 
of our work, nothing beyond a summary can be here at- 
tempted. There are nineteen juvenile organizations, two 
Young Folks' Temperance Unions, three Mission Sabbath- 
schools, one reading-room, one temperance hall, five counties 
where the W. C. T. IT. controls a column in the weekly paper, 
and many others where reports are published, often with 
kindly comments. There is, besides, a State temperance 
paper, the Advance Guard, recently established, edited 
jointly by the Good Templars and W. C. T. Union. The 
310 active Good Templar lodges, averaging seventy-five mem- 
bers, and forty-three T. M. C. Associations, and the State 
Temperance Alliance, all work hand in hand with the W. C. 
T. U. The women, through the president, Mrs. Governor 
"Wallace, presented the last legislature a petition praying for 
a voice in the local option election, which was to decide 
whether liquor should be sold or not, with 23,000 names, be- 
sides helping to circulate a general petition which had an 
aggregate of 75,000 names. The union is now working to- 
ward more perfect township organization which shall reach 
all the people, the introduction of juvenile temperance work 
into the Sabbath-schools, and the general circulation of a memo- 
rial to Congress. 

ILLINOIS 

organized a State union in October of last year, at Blooming- 
ton, and held its first annual meeting in Galesburg, October 
20. About twenty-six auxiliary unions were reported. Prayer- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 583 

meetings, Gospel temperance meetings, reform clubs, and ju- 
venile organizations are the prominent features in this State. 
Rockford has the most flourishing juvenile union in the county, 
and has contributed the most ideas on that subject. There 
are about thirty reform clubs organized, chiefly through the 
labors of Francis Murphy. Ten of these clubs are in Chicago. 
A daily Gospel temperance meeting has been held in Chicago 
since January last, with a large attendance, at which meeting 
over 1,100 men have signed the pledge. At the weekly 
Bethel Home meeting in that city 2,000 have signed the 
pledge. A great many mass meetings, at which thousands 
have signed, have been held in this State, and there is a 
marked improvement in public sentiment. 

MISSOURI 

organized in St. Louis, May 19. The women of the local union 
in that city have worked on amid darkness that could be felt, 
sustaining a Gospel temperance meeting, at which many have 
been reformed. In Hannibal, and one or two other towns, 
much has been done, but no recent report is at hand. The St. 
Louis secretary closes her report thus : " There is an in- 
creasing interest in the subject, and our faith is strong." 

IOWA.. 

The earnest vice-president for this w T ide-awake State, Mis. 
M. J. Aldrich, thus sums up the work : " There have been, 
besides the State society, district unions organized in the first, 
third, fourth, and fifth districts, and three county unions. I 
have had information of fifty societies organized on the basis 
of our plan of work, and all but three of them organized since 
the crusade. There are eleven juvenile societies, seven reform 
clubs, six coffee-houses and reading-rooms." 

WISCONSIN 

organized at Milwaukee, October 21, 1874, and held its recent 
annual meeting in Fond du Lac, October 19, 20 and 21. Mrs. 
S. J. Steele, our national vice-president, reports nineteen local 
unions, six flourishing Bands of Hope, several reading and 
lunch-rooms, and adds : " Comparatively few of our temper- 



584 THE TRUE PATH. 

ance bands have as yet become auxiliary to our State alliance. 
They are taking measures to do so, however, and I am very 
sure the work with us is gaining in permanence and favor 
everywhere. Our State convention last month was a most 
harmonious and profitable, as well as inspiring and enthusi- 
astic meeting. The facts brought out there indicate no dimi- 
nution of interest in this great and important movement." 

MINNESOTA 

has as yet no State organization, but there are local unions in 
nearly all the towns, some of them doing effective work. 
There is also a temperance organization in the Sabbath- 
schools of the State, very successfully conducted by women. 
California and Oregon have also local unions. These three 
States will soon wheel into line of battle. The president of 
St. Paul W. T. IT. writes : "Heart and soul are with you in 
this great work." 

Kansas and Arkansas are reported as having a State organi- 
zation, but no recent tidings are at hand. 

NEBRASKA 

held a State Convention and organized a Union at Lincoln, the 
State capital, on October 12. The secretary, Mrs. Spurlock, 
writes : " You may depend upon Nebraska ; we are awake in 
this dark hour, and see the gray streaks of an early dawn." 
These words are a fitting close to our roll-call of the States. 

Briefly to recapitulate, bringing out salient features, Maine 
has given, since the crusade, the idea of the temperance camp- 
meeting, which, though not original with us, has been rendered 
effective largely through the efforts of our own workers. Con- 
necticut influences elections, has availed itself of petitions, 
and given us the best form on record. New York has kept 
alive the visitation of saloons, and proved, what may we never 
forget, that this is always practicable if conducted wisely. In 
the relief and rescue branches of our work, the Empire State 
is perhaps without a rival. The women of Pennsylvania have 
bearded the gubernatorial lion in his den, and the Ilartranft 
veto had the added sin of women's prayers and tears denied* 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 585 

Maryland and the District of Columbia prove that the North 
must look to her laurels when the South is free to enter on our 
work. As for Ohio, as Daniel Webster said of the old Bay- 
State, " There she stands ; look at her !" — foremost among 
leaders in the new crusade. Michigan is working bravely 
amid discouragements. Illinois has given us the most promis- 
ing phase of our juvenile work, and leads off in reform cLubs. 
Our best organized States are Ohio, Indiana, New York, Penn- 
sylvania and Iowa. By reason of their multiplied conventions 
of State, district and county, their numerous auxiliaries, their 
petitions and their juvenile work, Ohio and Indiana bear off 
the palm and stand as the banner States of our Union up to 
this time, each of them having as many as two hundred and 
fifty auxiliaries. 

Our review develops the fact that of the forty-seven States 
and Territories forming the United States, twenty-two States 
have formed temperance unions auxiliary to the Woman's 
National Union. Of the twenty-five not yet organized, twelve 
are Southern States and eight are Territories ; while of the 
remaining five, three are about to organize State unions, and 
have already flourishing local unions. So that, without exag- 
geration, we may say we have fairly entered into the land to 
possess it. To bring about this vast result of organization, 
and to maintain it, there have been held (not to mention con- 
ventions of districts and counties, the name of which is legion) 
forty-five State conventions of women, almost all within the 
last year. It also marks decided progress of public opinion 
that women were delegates, by invitation, to the last national 
convention, called by that dignified and. somewhat conserva- 
tive body, the National Temperance Society. But while 
temperance conventions are inspiring and grand, while it indi- 
cates a marvellous advance in public sentiment that forty-five 
of them have been held by our sisters in the past year, let us 
remember that it is the earnest prayers and patient work of 
the local auxiliaries which mark enduring progress. Let us 
not forget that the fires of these broad hearths, around which 



586 THE TRUE PATH ; 

we lovingly gather in the councils of our peaceful war, are fed 
by the steady faith of the women at home, whose hearts are 
lifted up this very hour to the great Master of assemblies, that 
his Spirit may inspire all that we say and do. 

The number of written communications sent out during the 
year from our Western office to women in every State in the 
Union is nearly five thousand. This is exclusive of " docu- 
ments," which have gone by the bushel from the Eastern and 
Western offices, and also of the incessant correspondence of 
our president. Either president or secretary has spoken in 
nearly every State in which our organization exists. During 
the summer months, conventions, camp-meetings and local 
auxiliaries in large numbers have been addressed by officers of 
of our national and State unions in all of the Eastern and 
Middle and in many of the Western States. The corresponding 
secretary would here gratefully recognize the liberality of the 
Chicago Union, which, though she was at the head of their 
organization, consented to a four months' absence .spent in the 
service of the National Union, and to almost constant corres- 
pondence on its behalf throughout the year. Noteworthy in 
our history for the year is the monster petition circulated in 
nearly every State, presented to Congress on our behalf by 
Senator Morton, of Indiana, and defended in an eloquent 
speech before the Finance Committee by our president. Later 
in this convention she will give an extended account of an 
event, full of significance as the entering wedge into that fort- 
ress of power whence we shall some day obtain national pro- 
hibition of the liquor traffic. A little book of "Hints and 
Helps," prepared by the corresponding secretary, was issued 
last spring from the National Publishing House at New York, 
and in June our paper, the Womarts Temperance Ujiion, was 
ably launched from the Philadelphia office, with Mrs. Jennie 
Y. Willing as the editor, Mrs. Johnson and Miss AVillard as 
corresponding editors, and Mrs. Wittenmeyer as publisher. 
Conducted thus, in all its departments, by women, this organ 
of our Union should have the united support of our auxiliaries. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 587 



The foregoing details of our work have been given at greater 
disadvantage than will be readily believed. In view of the 
great difficulty of obtaining reports, I beg leave to suggest 
that hereafter the vice-president of each State make the de- 
tailed report for that State, and that a blank be sent by the 
corresponding secretary to be filled out with a few items of 
general information. There are many suggestions I would 
like to make, in addition to those of our president's stirring 
address, among them these : That the committee on juvenile 
work be instructed to prepare a manual of information and 
instruction, and also a song-book, for our young folks ; that a 
children's day be set apart, to be observed in the Centennial 
year for the first time, with special exercise and a parade of 
the Cold Water Army ; that a Centennial medal be prepared 
to be given for proficiency in studies of the juvenile union, 
and a prize offered for the banner juvenile union of the land ; 
that our auxiliaries endeavor to secure funds for prize essays 
in Sabbath-schools and public-schools ; and that we invite 
juvenile delegates to attend our State conventions. Further- 
more, that as a Union we adopt a motto and device, the cross 
and flag being mentioned as appropriate, and attention being 
hereby called to a design furnished by Miss Mary Lathbury, 
of New York ; also that we would recommend State unions to 
hold mass conventions six months later than the annual dele- 
gated conventions ; and that of our workers, whether officers 
or not, a directory be kept at headquarters ; and last, but 
by no means least, that we make Martha Washington tea- 
parties the chief social entertainments of the winter, with a 
view to replenishing our treasury. 

I have tried to set forth the history we have made thus far 
as temperance women of America. No one can be more con- 
scious than I of its imperfections, especially its utter inade- 
quacy to represent the great work of amelioration and reform 
which you have witnessed. I beg you charitably to remember 
the difficulties resulting from incompleteness in the reports 
furnished by the States ; and yet, if I were asked to give the 



588 THE TEUE PATH : 

very essence of our work, I should not name a single item in 
the long report I have submitted. This, rather, is the practi- 
cal side of our achievement : The women of America are 
asleep no longer over that powder-mine, the liquor traffic. 
We have begun — we believe that with God's help we can 
finish. Women are realizing their power to think, to plan, to 
transact business, to influence the, decisions of the polls, to 
hasten the sway of the Cross in this land of the Star-Spangled 
Banner. I have heard more women say, " I'm glad I'm 
alive !" in this last year than in all my previous history. 
Children are opening their eyes with wonder at the notion that 
they can do much to help the world along. Good men are 
believing more in the triumph of the right, and bad men fear- 
ing more the downfall of the wrong ; and, withal, more than 
in any years before, the poor have the Gospel preached to 
them. Dear sisters, when people would discourage us, we 
must remind them how vastly worse the outlook might have 
been to-day, if, in December, 1873, we had not heard the 
voice of God calling : " Woman, I say unto you, arise !" 
There is no logic and less faith in those who grow discouraged 
in a noble cause. Rather than let us be of the immortal com- 
pany who 

u Rowing hard against the stream, 
See distant lights of Eden gleam, 
And do not dream it is a dream." 

Let us be true to our sweet tryst at twilight before the 
mercy-seat, and for our watchword let us murmur with un- 
wearied faith : 

' ' For God and Home and Native Land [" 

Besides carrying out the suggestions of the foregoing report, 
the second national convention acted upon the following re- 
commendations of the president's address : 1. To establish a 
lyceum bureau which should furnish organizers, speakers, 
readers, singers, etc., to those wishing to form local young 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 589 

women's or juvenile temperance unions or reform clubs, the 
demand for such services being far in excess of the (accept- 
able) supply, although our work constantly develops able 
speakers among women. 

2. To arrange a definite plan by which young women may 
actively engage in our work. 

3. To appoint a medical commission to investigate the 
medical uses of alchohol, its effect upon the health of the 
country, etc. 

4. To appoint a commission (of women) on Bible wines, 
since doctors of divinity seem to reach no conclusion. 

5. A committee on presenting our cause to ministerial, 
Sunday-school, educational, medical, and other associations, 
urging them to declare their intentions in regard to it. 

6. Committee on an international convention of women, to 
be held in Philadelphia Academy of Music in June next. 

7. Committee on Finance and the incorporation of the Wo- 
man's National Christian Temperance Union. 

*■ 

This convention surprised many, and it was pronounced by 
impartial and able judges " one of the most clear-headed and 
best-tempered recently held by man or woman. There was a 
marked growth in the knowledge of business and parliamen- 
tary usage, and no falling off in the zeal and Christian devo- 
tion of its members." 

• The general officers were re-elected, with the exception of 
the treasurer, who, having resigned, was replaced by Mrs. S. 
K. Leavitt, of Cincinnati. Some changes and additions were 
made in the list of vice-presidents. 

The lady managers of the Centennial Exposition requested 
the National Union to get State unions to send printed and 
written reports of their labors to the centennial committee 
on woman's philanthropic enterprises. Mrs. Governor Wal- 
lace, of Indiana, presented excellent resolutions, which were 
adopted with slight revision. The following resolution has 
special interest to all persons in favor of total abstinence : 



590 THE TRUE PATH; 

" Hesolved, finally, That, whereas women are the greatest 
sufferers from the liquor traffic, and realizing that it is to be 
ultimately suppressed by means of the ballot, we, the Chris- 
tian women of the land, in convention assembled, do pray 
Almighty God, and all good and true men, that the question 
of the prohibition of the liquor traffic should be submitted to 
all the adult citizens of this country, irrespective of sex, not 
as a means of enlarging our rights, nor antagonizing the sexes, 
but as a means of protecting ourselves, our children and homes, 
from the ravages of the rum power." 

The second annual meeting of the Woman's National Chris- 
tian Temperance Union was held in Newark, New Jersey, 
in October, 1876. From the reports made to this meeting, we 
take the following interesting statements, showing how actively 
the work has been carried on. 

" Twenty-two State unions were represented at this meeting, 
and local unions were reported as having been formed for the 
first time in Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas, preparatory to 
State organizations. An international temperance convention 
of women had been held in the Academy of Music, Philadel-. 
phia, from which resulted an International Woman's Temper- 
ance Union." 

The following summary of the work of the year will be 
perused with interest : - 

"In almost every organized State, the request of our 
national committee that ministerial, medical and educational 
associations be asked to declare their position in relation to 
temperance reform has been complied with. In every instance 
the ladies have been courteously received, and in no case lias 
the declaration of opinion been adverse, and in many, most 
hopeful to our cause. The letter of Mrs. Wittenmeyer to the 
international medical convention recently held in Philadelphia, 
secured the important declaration against alcohol made by 
that body. 

"In February, our president, accompanied by Mrs. Mary R. 
Denman, president of New Jersey W. T. U., made a trip to 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 591 

Kentucky, Tennessee and Louisiana, in the endeavor to enlist 
our Southern sisters in the temperance work. Large meetings 
were addressed, and several local unions organized. 

" In the month of May, thirty-six temperance meetings were 
held. in the State of Ohio, by the corresponding secretary, who 
has also made a trip through Michigan, and spoken in all the 
Eastern, Middle, and several of the Western States since the 
last meeting. 

" Our recording secretary, Mrs. Mary C. Johnson, has visited 
Great Britain, by invitation of Christian women there, for the 
purpose of introducing our Gospel work. Going in the spirit 
of the crusade, Mrs. Johnson's labors have awakened an earnest 
spirit of inquiry and activity among the thoughtful and com- 
paratively leisure class. During her six months' absence in 
England and Ireland, she addressed one hundred and twenty- 
one audiences and conducted forty prayer-meetings. 

" ' Mother Stewart,' of Ohio, has also visited England and 
Scotland this year, under the auspices of the Good Templars, 
and much good has resulted from her labors. 

"Our union has circulated the petition to Congress for a 
commission of inquiry into the costs and results of the liquor 
traffic in America, and to the centennial commissioners pray- 
ing them not to allow the sale of intoxicants on the exposition 
grounds. The desired commission of inquiry has been ordered 
by the Senate in response to the wish of the united temperance 
societies of the land, but the subject did not come before the 
House at the last session. 

" Our paper has constantly increased in its hold upon the 
local unions, whose devotion to its interests augurs well for 
its future success. 

" The number of documents scattered among our auxiliaries 
cannot be accurately stated, but is not less than twelve or 
fifteen thousand, and the correspondence of the officers by 
letter and postal-card will not fall short of the same estimate. 
To correct misapprehensions, it should, perhaps, be stated that 



592 THE TRUE PATH ; 

no officer of the National Union has received a dollar for 
services or travelling expenses during the year." 

In the State of Minnesota, as the result of woman's efforts, 
they have had for several years a " Sunday-School Temper- 
ance League," which in one year had the signatures of seven- 
teen thousand children who had already " pledged to abstain 
from all intoxicants as a beverage." Says this same report of 
1877 : " We have carried the work into sixty-one new schools, 
held sixty-three anniversary meetings and temperance con- 
certs, instigated about one thousand addresses in the Sunday- 
schools, secured six thousand six hundred and seventy-four 
signers to our pledges, and one thousand and fifteen to our 
constitution." 

These statistics go to prove that one of the most important 
branches of the Union is that devoted to the youth of this 
country, and to show how vast a work this is, and how 
great the results prove to be. 

"In most of the larger towns," says our authority, 
"throughout the United States, where active local unions 
exist, juvenile unions, bands of hope, or temperance associa- 
tions by some other name, have been formed among the 
children. These have, in many cases, a large membership ; 
often as high as from five to six hundred. In the city of 
Rockford, Illinois, the juvenile union numbers over eight hun- 
dred boys and as many girls. The pledge taken by these 
children includes, in some localities, tobacco and profanity as 
well as intoxicants." 

The work of reform and rescue is mainly carried on by the 
State and local unions, especially in towns and cities. Relig- 
ious temperance meetings in smaller places are held weekly, 
and in the cities daily, and sometimes twice a day. Chicago 
has as many as eighteen meetings every week. 

" Reform clubs " have sprung from the efforts made by the 
praying bands, and are intended " to hold in safety the men 
whom they have been able to rescue." These clubs are quite 
numerous in New England and the West, and have a very 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 593 

large membership exclusively made up of reformed men. In 
Newark, New Jersey, there is a club with a membership of 
over six hundred reformed men, nearly all of whom have been 
rescued in the past three years through the efforts of the 
Woman's Temperance Union of that city. 

From the reports of the third year's work from the various 
unions it was estimated, after deducting from the returns all 
who were known to have broken the pledge, that ten thousand 
remained as the number reported to have been saved during 
the year, who were still standing in the strength which God 
had given them. The larger part of these reformed men had 
united themselves with the church, and were earnestly endeav- 
oring to lead Christian lives. 

Another very important and interesting branch of the work 
of the "Woman's Christian Temperance Union," is that of 
keeping alive a sentiment adverse to the traffic in liquor. 

As long as the State and national government give the 
sanction of law to this trade, the women find their efforts to 
save the fallen almost a hopeless matter. 

The women of the State Union made an appeal to the voters 
of Massachusetts, under date of August 15, 1877. In this 
document the evils of the traffic are clearly and earnestly set 
forth. It is as follows : 

" The Woman's Christian Temperance Union comes to you 
with a solemn and earnest appeal. 

u Our mission is the redemption of the commonwealth 
from the curse of intemperance. During the past year we 
have labored incessantly for this end, and have expended 
nearly twenty thousand dollars in efforts to rescue the perish- 
ing, and to educate public sentiment in favor of total absti- 
nence. 

" In this work we have met numerous obstacles — the apathy 
of the people, the inherited and depraved appetites of drunk- 
ards, and the perilous social customs of the day, which are 
indorsed by the practice of many otherwise excellent people. 
Worse than all these combined is the influence of the licensed 



594 THE TRUE PATH; 

dram-shop. We can arouse the indifferent to action ; we can 
enkindle in the drunkard aspirations for a better life than that 
of debauchery ; we hope, in time, by constant agitation, to 
change the social customs of the day. But against the in- 
fluence of the licensed dram-shop we are powerless. We 
have no ability to cope with this most formidable enemy of 
virtue, prosperity and good order. 

" A long and bitter experience compels us to say that the 
most untiring efforts to reclaim the drunkard have, in many 
instances, proved unavailing, because his demoralized will has 
been powerless to resist the temptations placed in his path by 
the sanction of the State. 

" Worse, if possible, even than this — the licensed dram-shop 
is instrumental in creating a new generation of drunkards. 
For thither resort our young men, the future hope of the 
country, who speedily fall before the seductions of the place, 
their habits of sobriety are subverted, their moral sense is 
blunted, their will palsied, and they drift rapidly into the 
appalling condition of habitual drunkenness. The licensed 
dram-shops are recruiting offices, where another army of 
drunkards is enlisted, to fill the ranks depleted by dishonored 
deaths — and the great commonwealth extends over them the 
aegis of its protection, indorsing them, by the sanction of law. 
The people of Massachusetts drink annually twenty -five mil- 
lion dollars' worth of intoxicating liquors. Only God can 
furnish the statistics of sorrow, poverty, disease, vice and 
crime, begotten by this fearful consumption of strong drink. 

" Under these discouraging circumstances, men of Massa- 
chusetts, we appeal to you ! The licensed dram-shop is the 
creature of political action. We are wholly destitute of 
political power, by which it must be overthrown. Anguished 
by the peril of fathers and brothers, husbands and sons, we 
appeal to you to make good the oft-repeated assertion that t lie 
men of the State represent and protect the women of the 
State at the ballot-box. We beseech you to make earnest 
efforts to secure the repeal of the license law at the next elec- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 595 

tion, and the enactment of the law prohibiting the sale of 
intoxicating liquors as a beverage. 

" We are sure we speak the sentiment of the Christian 
people of this State, and of all who stand for morality, thrift, 
virtue and good order, when we say that the great State of 
Massachusetts should not take sides with the drunkard-maker 
against his victim. If either is to be protected by law, it 
should be the drunkard, since he is the weaker, rather than 
the rum-seller, who persistently blocks the pathway of reform. 

" We know that we utter the voice of the majority of the 
women of the State when we plead the cause of prohibition — 
and the women of Massachusetts outnumber its men by more 
than sixty thousand. It is women who are the greatest suf- 
ferers from the licensed dram-shops of the community — and 
we pray you, therefore, voters of Massachusetts, to take such 
action that the la»w which protects these drinking-shops may 
be blotted from the statute book at the next election." 

This appeal from the Christian women of Massachusetts 
was signed by Mrs. Mary A. Livermore, president, and Mrs. 
L. B. Barrett, secretary of the State branch of the Woman's 
National Temperance Union, and shows the animating spirit 
of that body. 

In all the States where unions exist this important part of 
the work is vigorously pushed and furthered. It cannot be 
far ahead in the future when the good results of this work will 
become evident at the polls. What all temperance advocates 
want is an anti-license vote, and in time Ihey all hope to ob- 
tain it. 

The union was instrumental in gaining for the cause of total 
abstinence the declaration of the International Medical Con- 
gress of 1876, which is altogether adverse to the use of alcohol 
as food or medicine. 

Seeing how very largely the medical prescription of alcohol 
was hurting their cause, these undaunted women, being in pos- 
session of the latest results of chemical and physiological 
investigation in regard to its specific action on the body, sent 



596 THE TETTE PATH ; 

delegates to various State medical associations at their annual 
meetings, and urged them to pass resolutions defining its true 
status as a food or a medicine, and discouraging its use in the 
profession. They found a respectful hearing from the different 
medical faculties, and succeeded in inducing the physicians to 
give the matter close investigation. 

The result was that a number of physicians who had been 
in the habit of giving alcohol as a stimulant for weak or con- 
valescent patients gave the practice up entirely. 

The crowning result, however, of this effort to make the 
medical profession limit or abandon the prescription of alcohol, 
came when the International Congress made through its " Sec- 
tion on Medicine " its unequivocal declaration. 

This body was composed of about six hundred delegates 
from Europe and America, among them some of the ablest 
and most noted physicians of the world. 

The following memorial was laid before it by the National 
Temperance Society, through its president, W. E. Dodge, and 
secretary, J. N*. Stearns : 

"The National Temperance Society sends greeting, and 
respectfully invites from your distinguished body a public 
declaration to the effect that alcohol should be classed with 
other powerful drugs ; that, when prescribed medicinally, it 
should be with conscientious caution and a sense of grave 
responsibility ; that it is in no sense food to the human sys- 
tem ; that its improper use is productive of a large amount of 
physical disease, tending to deteriorate the human race ; and 
to recommend, as representatives of enlightened science, to 
your several nationalities, total abstinence from alcoholic 
beverages." 

The response to this memorial was made to W. E. Dodge by 
J. Ewing Mears, M. D., secretary of the Section on Medicine, 
International Congress, and was as follows, under date of Sep- 
tember 9, 187G : 

" Dear Sir : — I am instructed by the Section on Medicine, 
International Medical Congress of 1876, to transmit to you, 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 597 

as the action of the section, the following conclusions adopted 
by it with regard to the use of alcohol in medicine, the same 
being in reply to the communication sent by the National 
Temperance Society. 

" 1. Alcohol is not shown to have a definite food value by 
any of the usual methods of chemical analysis or physiological 
investigation. 

" 2. Its use as a medicine is chiefly that of a cardiac 
stimulant, and often admits of substitution. 

" 3. As a medicine, it is not well fitted for self -prescription 
by the laity, and the medical profession is not accountable for 
such administration, or. for the enormous evils arising there- 
from. 

"4. The purity of alcoholic liquors is, in general, not as 
well assured as that of articles used for medicine should be. 
The various mixtures, when used as medicine, should have 
definite and known composition, and should not be inter- 
changed promiscuously." 

The full text of the memorial of the Woman's Christian 
Temperance Union sent to the " Section on Medicine," was 
composed as follows by Mrs. Annie Wittenmeyer, the Presi- 
dent : 

" To the Chairman and Members of the International Medical 

Congress : 

" Honored Sirs : — I take the liberty, as a representative of 
the Woman's National Christian Temperance Union of the 
United States, to call your attention to the. relation of the 
medical use of alcohol to the prevalence of that fearful 
scourge, intemperance, 

"The distinguished Dr. Mussey said, many years ago : 'So 
long as alcohol retains a place among sick patients, so long 
there will be drunkards.' 

" Dr. Rush wrote strongly against its use as early as 1790. 
And at one time the College of Physicians of Philadelphia 
memorialized Congress in favor of restraining the use of 



598 THE TRUE PATH; 

distilled liquors, because, as they claimed, they were c destruc- 
tive of life, health and the faculties of the mind.' 

" 'A Medical Declaration,' published in London, December, 
1872, asserts that ' it is believed that the inconsiderate pre- 
scription of alcoholic liquids by medical men for their patients 
has given rise, in many instances, to the formation of intem- 
perate habits.' This manifesto was signed by over two hundred 
and fifty of the leading medical men of the United Kingdom. 
When the nature and effects of . alcohol were little known, it 
was thought to be invaluable as a medicine. But in the light 
of recent scientific investigations, its claims have been chal- 
lenged and its value denied. 

" We are aware that the question of the medical use of 
alcohol has not been fully decided, and that there is a differ- 
ence of opinion among the ablest medical writers. But we 
notice that as the discussion and investigation goes on, and 
the new facts are brought out, its value as a remedial agent is 
depreciated. 

" A great many claims have been brought forward in its 
favor, but one by one they have gone down under the severe 
scrutiny of scientific research, until only a few points are left 
in doubt. In view of this, and the startling fact that tens 
of thousands die annually from its baneful effects, we earnestly 
urge you to give the subject a careful examinasion. 

" You have made the study of the physical nature of man 
your life-work, and you are the trusted advisers of the people 
in all matters pertaining to the treatment of diseases and the 
preservation of life and health. 

"You are, therefore, in a position to instruct and warn the 
masses in regard to its indiscriminate use, either as a medicine 
or a beverage. 

" We feel sure that, true to your professional honor, and the 
grave responsibilities of your distinguished position, you will 
search out and give us the facts, whatever they may be. 

"If you should appoint a standing committee from your 
own number, of practical scientific men, who would give time 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPEKAKCE. 599 

and thought to this question, it would be very gratifying to 
the one hundred thousand women I represent, and most ac- 
ceptable to the general public. 

" I am, with high considerations of respect, 

" Tour obed't servant, 

"Annie Wittenmeyer, 
" PresH W. Nat. Chris. Temp. Union. 
"Philadelphia, Sept. 6, 1876." 

The results of the first two years' work of the Brooklyn 
Union, as reported by Mrs. Johnson, the president, are as fol- 
lows : 

" It may be said of the work in this city that ' the Lord 
hath magnified His name.' 

" When the Union was formed less than a score of churches 
were open to Christian women. Now almost all the Protestant 
church doors throughout the entire city are open, and minis- 
ters and people bid them cordial welcome and God-speed ; and 
are no longer afraid the ' women's movement will lead into 
extremes.' One hundred and sixty-five churches have thus 
been visited and addressed by the ladies of the Union, among 
whom may be mentioned Miss Albina Hamilton, Mrs. Caro- 
line E. Ladd, Mrs. Mary A. Wilder, Mrs. Jacob Chase, Mrs. 
Ellen C. L. Conklin, and others, whose names do and do not 
elsewhere appear in this volume. 

" When the work began, in 1874, the doors of 3,000 saloons 
were open on the Sabbath, bidding defiance to the Sunday- 
closing law, as well as the sacred day. Now there is no open 
selling on the Sabbath, and whatever there is, is done by 
stealth, the doors of these places being closed, as in other busi- 
ness houses. There were, also, 6,810 fewer arrests in 1875 
than in the previous year. Nearly one-half of the saloons of 
the city are gone from the streets, and property-holders refuse 
a rental of buildings for such purposes. 

" It is a matter of special gratefulness to God that the ladies 
observe that every saloon, without exception, in which they 



600 THE TEUE PATH ; 

held saloon prayer-meetings, is entirely closed, and the build- 
ings are devoted to other purposes. 

" Scores of reformed men are members of churches, and 
have taken their places as useful and respectable citizens, and 
favorable accounts are heard from them by letters. Among 
these reference is made with special thanksgiving to the labor 
of Mr. Hallenbeek, whom God has called into his great 
harvest-field as a most successful temperance evangelist. He 
has been during the I^st year (accompanied by his friend, Mr. 
Cassidy), the instrument in a great revival work in Southern 
Indiana, Illinois, and other States. The meetings have been 
enthusiastic, and so crowded in many tow^ns that the rush for 
admittance exceeded anything ever seen in those parts before. 
The signers to the pledge numbered thousands, and hundreds 
were inquirers of the way of Christ. 

" Another of the Brooklyn reformed men, who left a band 
of minstrels three years ago, has been for several months 
preaching with great acceptance, in connection with others, in 
out-door Gospel meetings, in the streets of New York city, 
where the degraded and fallen most frequent. 

" The untiring and successful labor in a legal direction, 
bearing upon Sunday-closing, of Captain Oliver Cotter, is 
well known throughout the whole State and adjacent States, 
and the demand for his time and services is beyond that to 
which he can respond. 

" The Brooklyn Union in the three and a half years of its 
existence has held four hundred and fifteen meetings in towns 
and cities outside the city of Brooklyn, and has done much in 
setting in motion the good work in many places on Long 
Island and Staten Island. 

" No more licenses will be granted to women in Brooklyn. 

" In two years our Union has made two thousand five hun- 
dred visits to public houses, held one hundred and thirty 
meetings in churches, kept up two daily prayer-meetings, and 
five regular Sabbath meetings, at which one thousand three 
hundred and twenty-five persons have asked for prayers, held 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 601 

public meetings in sixty-two different cities and villages, and 
during those two years, not altogether as the direct result of 
our efforts, but, as we believe, in answer to our prayers, one 
thousand three hundred and eighty saloons have been per- 
manently closed." 

One of the most important branches of the Woman's 
Christian Temperance Union is that known as friendly inns, 
which are managed on gospel as well as temperance principles. 
This appellation conspicuously placed on a building attracts 
the attention of those wretched beings whom habitual drunk- 
enness has brought to a degraded and lcmely situation, and 
leads them to the temperance people, who befriend and help 
the unfortunate. 

In the lowest, roughest portion of Cleveland is one of these 
good Samaritan houses, where the body and the soul are both 
nourished and strengthened. It has a nice, comfortable read- 
ing-room. The chief feature of this house is the religious 
meetings held there for the benefit of drunkards. In one year 
381 meetings were held, with an aggregate attendance of 
28,302 persons. 

The lady who has charge of this friendly inn is Miss F. 
Janet Duty, a Cleveland lady. She is the youngest worker in 
the Union. She is finely educated, of good family, and was 
preceptress for two years of the Ohio Female College at Cin- 
cinnati, and principal of Wheeling Female College. She has 
been an earnest worker in jails and among the destitute. 
When the Crusade came she gave up everything, and joined 
those inspired women to save men and women from everlast- 
ing ruin. 

Of the parish of the friendly inn, and its work, all of which 
is under her care, she says : 

" Those who have been reformed at the inn cherish a very 
warm attachment for it, and regard it as their spiritual home ; 
hence it has seemed to us impracticable and unwise to take the 
majority of these persons into the churches, while those who 
might be received are so identified with our work that they 



602 THE TRUE PATH ; 

can be illy spared. For many reasons we have felt that God 
has led us to form a religious association, which should give to 
its members the privileges of baptism and the Lord's Supper ; 
the former to be administered in the manner the candidate 
might choose. Those who are admitted to this association 
must give good evidence of conversion, sign the temperance 
pledge, and subscribe to simple articles of belief, so scriptural 
and undenominational that they can be assented to by every 
one of the christian women engaged in this work, notwith- 
standing we represent in our church membership five different 
denominations. 

" We regard our company of believers as a part of Christ's 
Church on earth, and believe we have fellowship with all who 
are in Christ." 

The annual report of the secretary of the union for 1877 
contains the following statistics by States : " Number of unions 
in Maine, 9 ; many others not auxiliary as yet ; juvenile 
unions, 35 ; reform clubs, 250. New Hampshire, unions, 8 ; 
reform clubs, 125. Vermont, unions, 14 ; juvenile, 8 ; reform 
clubs, 50. Massachusetts, unions, 122 ; juvenile, 22 ; reform 
clubs, 60. Connecticut, unions, 23 ; reform clubs, 8. Rhode 
Island, unions, 4 ; 23,000 pledges taken. New York, unions, 
34 ; juvenile, 150 ; reform clubs, 18 ; friendly inns, 2. New 
Jersey, unions, 43 ; juvenile, 13 ; reform clubs, 12. Pennsylva- 
nia, unions, 17 ; juvenile, 16. Tennessee, unions, 2. Maryland, 
unions, 6. Ohio, unions, 130 ; juvenile, 50 ; friendly inns, 5. 
Indiana, unions, 150. Iowa, unions, 75 ; juvenile, 30 ; friendly 
inns, 1. Minnesota, unions, 11 ; 17,000 pledged children. 
Nebraska, unions, 10. Wisconsin, unions, 15. Whole number 
of unions in the United States, 820 ; juvenile unions, 383." 

The following comparative statistics are also highly inter- 
esting : 

" Indiana has the largest number of auxiliary unions ; 
Maine has raised $15,000, and expended it in temperance 
work ; New Hampshire is temperance all the way through, 
one-fifth of the entire population, or one-third of her voters, 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 603 

being pledged to total abstinence ; Pennsylvania rejoices in 
fifty-two yards of petition ; Minnesota has an army of tem- 
perance juveniles 17,000 strong ; Ohio has the most friendly 
inns, and a flourishing Woman's Church ; Maine has the largest 
number of reform clubs — 250 — with a membership of 90,000 ; 
(Dr. Reynolds hails from there). New Hampshire offers six- 
ty-three free reading-rooms ; The little District of Columbia 
has circulated 300 petitions during the past year ; New York 
has 150 juvenile unions, the largest number auxiliary to the 
Woman's Christian Temperance Union of any State ; New 
Jersey has doubled the number of her unions each year of 
their existence within her borders. If she keeps on at that 
rate, every daughter of the soil will be ' taken, in ' within 
twelve or fifteen years ; Iowa has yielded the largest yearly 
increase, 26 new unions and 900 new members having been 
added during 1877." 

The officers elected for 1878 were : president, Mrs. Annie 
Wittenmeyer, of Philadelphia ; corresponding secretary, Mrs. 
Mary T. Burt, of Brooklyn ; recording secretary, Mrs. Mary 
C. Johnson, of Brooklyn ; treasurer, Mrs. S. K. Leavitt, of 
Cincinnati. 

The following sketches of the prominent ladies of the union 
are taken from the Chicago Post: 

"Mrs. Mary T. Burt, of Brooklyn, last year assistant re- 
cording secretary, now corresponding secretary, formerly a 
Western woman, of attractive face and dignified manners, is 
likewise a lady whose home and social circle have been among 
the highest. An Episcopalian by church-membership, she 
never did public work until the days of the temperance Cru- 
sade. She first lectured on temperance in her own city, 
Auburn, N. Y., and was immediately elected president of the 
Union. Since that time she has been untiring in her duties as 
publisher of Our Union, giving to it her strength, time and 
devotion. She will fill her new position with honor and ability 
to the National Union, and speak effectively for the cause. 

"Mrs. Sarah K. Bolton, of New York, assistant corre- 



604 THE TRUE PATH. 

sponding secretary, formerly of Cleveland, O., is a New 
England woman by birth and education. Has given her time 
to literary pursuits' and study, aside from active labors in 
church work, evangelistic and temperance work. When quite 
young a book of her poems was published by the Appletons ; 
later, a temperance story, entitled 'The Present Problem.' 
She has written regularly for the Advance for some years, 
besides many religious and and secular papers, East and West. 
She was actively engaged in the crusade work of Cleveland, 
and the first woman to lead a band in Northern Ohio at Berea, 
after the good news spread from Hillsborough. Mrs. Bolton 
has a happy home and family. She was nominated for corre- 
sponding secretary at the late convention, but declined on 
account of going'on a proposed visit abroad. 

"Mrs. J. Ellen Foster, of Iowa, is an able and accomplished 
Christian lawyer. She was a New England girl, daughter of 
a minister who became almost ostracised for abolition princi- 
ples. She married a lawyer, read Blackstone with her baby 
in her arms, and was induced to take up the profession of law, 
at her husband's earnest solicitation. She believes she was 
called of God into this work, especially to help her own sex 
who need redress in their own sufferings through the liquor 
t a flic. She has practiced in every court, even before the 
Supreme, a thing not done by any other woman. At first she 
was greatly opposed to public speaking by women. She has a 
very happy home, and several children ; is a most lovely and 
sympathetic woman as well as an eloquent speaker. She is 
very popular among the men and women of her own State. 
She is corresponding secretary of the Woman's International 
Temperance Union. 

" Mrs. Elizabeth K. Churchill, of Rhode Island, is a lyceum 
lecturer, and well known as a journalist through the Provi- 
dence Journal, to which she is an editorial contributor, the 
New Century, the paper published last year by the Woman's 
Centennial Commission in Philadelphia, and the Woman's 
Journal. She is vice-president of the Rhode Island Associa- 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 605 

tion for the advancement of women, and the social science 
organization of women, which held its annual congress three 
years ago, in Chicago, and lately in Cleveland. She is a clear 
thinker and an able speaker. She is identified with all reforms 
especially designed to help women, and with many of general 
interest. 

"Miss Margaret E. Winslow, of Brooklyn, editor of Our 
Union, the organ of the Woman's National Christian Tem- 
perance Union, was for some years teacher in Packer Insti- 
tute, Brooklyn. She has written f or the New York Tribune, 
Observer, Evangelist, Witness, Hartford Churchman, Christian 
at Work, and has published two temperance books, c Barf ord 
Mills' and 'A More Excellent Way,' as well as many beauti- 
ful poems, which have found their way into the leading 
papers of the country. 

" Miss Julia Colman, now of New York, chairman of the 
Committee for the Dissemination of Temperance Literature, 
has done valuable service in the temperance cause in the 
juvenile department of Our Union, her c Catechism on Alco- 
hol,' her scientific articles on temperance, her ' Leaflets ' scat- 
tered all through the country, and her Young People's Com- 
rade, a temperance paper especially attractive to young people. 
She was for a long time in the editorial department of the 
Sunday- School Advocate ; is a Western woman, and a sister 
of Rev. H. Colman, one of the leading Methodist clergymen 
of Wisconsin, now located in Milwaukee. 

" Mrs. L. H. Washington, of Iowa, is the wife of a minister, 
and has four children. She has for years been a contributor 
to the press, is a highly educated woman, an earnest Christian, 
and an able lecturer. Not suffering from intemperance in any 
members of her own family, her warm heart found a field for 
untiring labor among her less fortunate sisters, who had borne 
their sorrows in silence. She led the work earnestly in the 
Crusade, and is a brave, cheerful and true-hearted woman. 

The vice-presidents of the national union here present are as 
follows : — 



606 THE TKUE PATH; 

Ml 

"Mrs. S. J. Steele, of Appleton, Wis., is the wife of a minis- 
ter who has been president of Lawrence University, Appleton, 
Wis., for twelve years. She is a woman of superior educa- 
tion, physique, and address, and has had supervision of 
woman's foreign missionary work in her State for years ; was 
president of State temperance work for four years, superin- 
tendent of €l large Sunday-school in her own church for several 
years, and has had the advantages of foreign travel. Mrs. 
Steele has ten in her well-ordered family, and one of the hap- 
piest of homes. 

"Mrs. M. A. Stone, of Connecticut, is an unassuming, 
motherly woman, and has been a leading educator. Has had 
a family of her own, besides caring for four other children 
for eleven years. She has conducted a large and flourishing 
boarding-school for young ladies for thirty-nine years, and has 
been an officer in the National Educational Society longer 
than any other woman, and was president of the meeting held 
last year at Baltimore ; was president for twelve years of the 
ladies' department of the Connecticut Agricultural Society. 
Mrs. Stone was one of the National Teachers' party appointed 
to visit the schools and colleges of Europe, and was with them 
entertained by royalty itself. She has been an active worker 
in the cause of missions, and loves temperance as one of the 
agencies for bettering humanity. 

" Mrs. Allen Butler, of Syracuse, New York, is a middle- 
aged lady of most gentle and agreeable manners, whose means 
have enabled her to give her time heartily to all good works. 
She is president of the Presbyterian Woman's Society of her 
city, of the Old Ladies' Home Association, of the Foreign Mis- 
sionary Society, State president of the temperance work in her 
State, and chairman of the juvenile work for the national 
union. She lias had a large infant class in Sunday-school for 
twenty years, is thoroughly domestic, while at the same time, 
with the hearty co-operation of her husband, she gives her 
time to public work. 

"Mrs. J. M. Haven, of Vermont, is an educated, wealthy 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 607 

woman, and gives generously. She is a Congregationalism 
president of the auxiliary board of missions, and president for 
her State in the temperance work. She is a faithful and capa- 
ble worker, and a woman of great social influence. 

" Mrs. R. T. Brown, of Indiana, is a noble Christian woman. 
Her husband is professor of the Indianapolis Medical College, 
was also professor of literature in the North-western Univer- 
sity, chief chemist in the department of agriculture at Wash- 
ington, and author of a valuable physiology, which brings in 
the temperance question, and has been gladly adopted by the 
public schools of Indiana. Mrs. Brown has two sons who are 
ministers, and one a teacher. She has done good work in her 
church, in foreign missions, and in temperance. In her capac- 
ity as State president she has carefully organized the State 
for active work. 

" Mrs. M. R. Denman, of New Jersey, a lady past middle 
life, is a most devoted Christian worker. She has alwa}^s been 
actively engaged in church work, and is president of a home 
for the friendless. She and Mrs. Wittenmeyer have been 
laboring through the Southern States for the temperance cause. 
She was the first to begin the work in New Jersey, and with 
Mother Hill, she has had but one ambition — to win souls. 

" Mrs. Stevens, of Iowa, is an elderly lady, wife of a clergy- 
man, a devoted Christian, yet full of the humor that makes a 
public speaker attractive. No good work languishes where 
she is. 

" Mrs. A. P. Kelley, of Chicago, is a lady of fine manners 
and excellent executive ability, whose elegant home, full of 
evidences of the culture of foreign travel, was freely offered 
to all the delegates to the national convention. Her hospi- 
tality will give her a warm place in the hearts of temperance 
workers all over the country. Her wealth, time, and heart 
have been given heartily to the temperance cause. 

" Mrs. Julia M. Church, of Washington, is a white-haired 
though not elderly lady, of great refinement and gentleness, 
but of persistent purpose in all right doing. Her excellent 



608 THE TRUE PATH. 

common sense, and the general respect accorded her, have 
made her able to do in Washington a good work that few 
others could have accomplished. 

" Mrs. Myra J. Hackett, of Minnesota, formerly a New Eng- 
land woman, a modest, cultivated lady, always interested in 
Sunday-school work, has been enabled to do more for the 
children in temperance work in her State than, perhaps, any 
other woman. She wrote to earnest women in all the coun- 
ties, and they to the towns. She has three hundred women 
working on her plan in the Sunday-school. They visit the 
superintendent and obtain, if possible, on one Sunday of each 
three months, fifteen minutes' temperance talk, get the chil- 
dren to sign a pledge, and take books and papers. By this 
plan she has bought and distributed over one thousand copies 
of the Youth? s Temperance Banner, and given fifteen thou- 
sand certificates to as many pledged children. 

" In the grand army of women that was marshaled by the 
drum-beat of the Crusades, there are at least two hundred scat- 
tered over the twenty-three organized States, who are entitled 
to the rank of regimental leaders. Among these maybe named 
such notable temperance workers as Mrs. Prentiss, Crossman, 
Stevens, and Miss Crosby, of Maine ; Mrs. Sturdevant, of Ver- 
mont ; Mrs. Scott and Miss M'Intire, of New Hampshire ; 
Mrs. Gifford, Amsden and Talbot, of Mass.; Mrs. Buell and 
Moody, of Conn. ; Mrs. Barney and Holmes, of R. I. ; Mrs. 
Martindale and Miss Coates, of Delaware ; Mrs. Crook and 
M'Leod, of Maryland ; Mrs. Church and Mrs. Linville, of 
Washington, D. C; Mrs. Butler, Kenyon, Hartt, Decker, and 
M'Clees, of New York ; < Mother Hill,' Mrs. Clark, Nobles, 
Crane, Haines, and Miss Barker, of New Jersey ; Mrs. Chase, 
French, and Misses Davis, Jennings and Remington, of Pa. ; 
Mrs. Carpenter, Leiter, Sumner, Pugh and Woodbridge, of 
Ohio ; Mrs. Wait, Carse, Henry, Manny and Villars, of Illi- 
nois ; Mrs. Brown, Denny, Jarrett and Vining, of Indiana ; 
Mrs. Comstock, Hudson, Boise and Smith, of Michigan ; Mrs. 
Stevens, Wheeler, Washington, Aldrich and Moore, of Iowa ; 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 609 

Mrs. Cooly and Pinkhani, of Wisconsin ; Mrs. Hackett, of 
Minnesota ; Mrs. Hardy, of Nebraska. 

" Of women conspicuous in temperance literature are Mrs. 
Mary A. Livermore, Mrs. L. D. Barrett, Mrs. Sarah K. Bolton, 
and Miss Winslow ; Miss Julia Colman, the medical writer, 
whose tracts are high authority in her department ; Mrs. 
Hackett, Mrs. Beale, Miss Kimball, and Mrs. Griffith, the Ju- 
venile Work Quartette ; Mrs. Elizabeth Comstock, Mrs. Rob- 
inson, and Elizabeth Greenwood, pulpit speakers ; Miss 
M'Cartney, the young lady whose mission is to ' Our Girls'; 
Elizabeth K. Churchhill, whose specialty is * Strong Founda- 
tions,' described in her lecture of that name, on the influence 
of ancestral habits, food, early training, and home surround- 
ings on the development of the appetite for intoxicating 
drink. Some sections of the army workers, a few of whose 
leaders we have named, move forward only on the line of 
prayer, Bible exposition, and the temperance pledge ; others 
combine with these the supplementary work of petitioning 
municipal authorities and legislatures, circulating temperance 
literature, and opening reading-rooms, friendly inns, and such 
like." 

Among all the honored names associated with the cause of 
temperance no woman has reaped a more glorious record than 
that of Mrs. Wittenmeyer. 

" Some of us," says Miss Frances E. Willard, " have not 
forgotten that c Volume I, No. 1,' of that journalistic venture, 
Our Union, was edited and published by Mrs. Wittenmeyer, 
whose courage and faith were equal to the test of starting a 
paper without a cent in its treasury, or a subscriber's name 
upon its books. This proceeding was quite ' in character,' as 
is shown by the following account of our friend's active and 
beneficent career, from the pen of a New York journalist : — 

" Mrs. Wittenmeyer's maiden name was Turner. She was 
Vorn in Ohio, but her early home was Kentucky. Her grand- 
father was a graduate of Princeton College and an officer in 
the war of 1812. Her father was a native of the State of 



610 THE TRUE PATH ; 

Maryland, her mother of Kentucky, so that she inherits the 
warm, fervid temperament of the South, united with the cool, 
calculating reason of the North. She attended for several 
years a seminary in Ohio, where her education was carried 
much farther than was usual for young ladies at that time. 
She was married in her twenty-first year, and enjoyed many 
years of happy married life. She was very prominent in the 
church in consequence of her religious zeal and enthusiasm, 
and also for her great activity in all charitable enterprises. 

" At the beginning of the War of the Rebellion Mrs. 
Wittenmeyer was appointed sanitary agent for the State of 
Iowa by the legislature. Secretary Stanton, of the War De- 
partment, gave passes for herself and supplies through the 
army lines, and a letter of instruction to army officers to co- 
operate in her enterprise for the relief of the soldiers. In this 
worthy endeavor she continued throughout the entire war, 
changing her relation to it, however, by resigning her position 
as sanitary agent for Iowa to enter the service of the Christian 
Commission. Here she had the oversight of two hundred 
ladies, and she developed in this work her plan of special 
diet kitchen, to the great advantage of the health of our 
soldiers. The first kitchen was opened at Nashville, Tenn. 
In it was prepared food for eighteen hundred of the worst 
cases of sick and wounded soliders. These kitchens were 
superintended by the ladies under her direction. In this work 
she had the assistance of the surgeon-general, assistant- 
surgeon, and all the army officers, both military and medical. 
General Grant was a personal friend, and did all in his power to 
facilitate her efforts. By invitation of the surgeon-general she 
met the medical commission appointed to review the special 
diet cooking of the army. The work of this commission led 
to a thorough change in the hospital cooking of the army, 
which was lifted to a grade of hygienic perfection far above 
anything before known in military affairs, and from which it 
is not likely to fall again to the old standard. It is simple 
justice to add, what is a matter of history in the United 



OB, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 611 

States Christian Commission, that these improvement in the 
diet kitchens of the army were the means of saving thou- 
sands of valuable lives, and of restoring many noble men to 
health and usefulness. 

"About the close of the war Mrs. Wittenmeyer set in mo- 
tion the idea of a ' Home for Soldiers' Orphans,' and became 
herself the founder of the institution bearing this name in 
Iowa. It is not generally known that this enterprise origin- 
ated with the brave woman who had cared for the husbands 
and fathers through the perils of camp and hospital life. 
"When the fact that such an institution was to be opened in 
Iowa was generally known, hundreds of soldiers' orphans be- 
came the wards of the State. By request of the board of man- 
agers of the Iowa home she went to Washington city, and 
obtained from Secretary Stanton (other departments co-oper- 
ating) the beautiful barracks at Davenport, which cost the 
government forty-six thousand dollars, and hospital supplies 
amounting to five or six thousand more, subject to the approval 
of Congress, which was afterward obtained. The institution 
thus founded and equipped has accommodated over five hun- 
dred children at one time, and it still maintains a flourishing 
condition under the care of the State. 

" Mrs. Wittenmeyer next conceived the idea that the vast 
amount of talent and energy brought into activity by the 
philanthropies of the war should be maintained on a Christian 
basis in the church. Bishqp Simpson, always ready to aid in 
any movement promising greater usefulness for women, 
entered heartily into the plan, and the Methodist Episcopal 
Church established a Home Missionary Society of women, 
organized for the express purpose of ministering to the tem- 
poral and spiritual needs of the strangers and poor. This 
organization was made a General Conference Society at the 
session of 1872, and Mrs. Wittenmeyer was elected its corres- 
ponding secretary. During the year 1876 over fifty thousand 
families were visited under its auspices. 

"At the commencement of this new work Mrs. Witten- 



612 . THE TEUE PATH ; 

meyer removed to Philadelphia and founded her paper known 
as The Christian Woman, an individual enterprise, which 
has proved exceptionally successful. She has more recently 
established a juvenile paper, called The Christian Child, 
which is rapidly winning its way to public favor. In addi- 
tion to this large publishing work she has carried forward all 
the enterprises of the society above described, and known as 
6 The Ladies and Pastors' Christian Union,' traveling in its 
interest thousands of miles, and speaking in every State from 
Maine to California. 

" When, as an outgrowth of the Crusade, the temperance 
women met in their first national convention, it was but 
natural that they should choose as a leader one whose name 
already exhaled the perfume of a life of heroism on the field, 
and whose praises were spoken daily in thousands of homes. 
Her 'achievements in the past were a guarantee of success for 
the future. The record of the temperance work during the 
past three years fully proves the wisdom of their choice. 
Twenty-three States have been organized as auxiliary to the 
national Union, and a paper has been founded as its organ. 
Mrs. Wittenmeyer has also labored tirelessly in the lecture 
field, speaking sometimes six evenings in the week, besides 
traveling hundreds of miles. She has attended all the large 
conventions, of which forty-six were held in 1875. At the 
second annual meeting of the Woman's National Christian 
Temperance Union, held in Cincinnati, November, 1875, she 
presided with marked ability, and was re-elected pi*esident for 
the Centennial year by a unanimous vote of the delegates. 

" One of the most notable acts which has characterized her 
administration was the presentation to Congress (in February, 
1875) of a huge petition on behalf of our Local, State, and 
National Unions, asking for the prohibition of the liquor 
traffic, on which occasion a 'hearing' was granted by the Con- 
gressional Judiciary Committee. Another act, even more 
important, was the sending of a letter of inquiry to the Inter- 
national Medical Association, which met in Philadelphia in 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 613 

the summer of the Centennial year. This led to another hear- 
ing before a committee of celebrated physicians of Europe 
and our own country, and resulted in the well-known ' resolu- 
tions ' expressive of the most important medical opinion against 
intoxicants on record, when we consider the representative 
character of those who gave it. The latest official act of our 
president was holding a 'Woman's National Camp-Meeting,' 
at Ocean Grove, which, conducted wholly and addressed 
largely by women, commanded the earnest attention of the 
thousands present to the close, and was equally remarkable for 
spiritual and intellectual power. We believe the first woman's 
camp-meeting on record was held in Iowa last year, and it 
was quite in keeping that one whose public work began in 
that noble young State should have conducted the first east of 
the Alleghanies. 

"At the annual meeting in Newark, 1876, Mrs. Wittenmeyer 
was elected a third time to the chief office m the gift of the 
temperance women of America, and by a unanimous vote. 

" It is a pleasant sight to see our friend, in her cheery Phil- 
adelphia home, with her efficient secretaries, Miss Fisher and 
Miss Merchant, and her exemplary son, Charlie, around her, 
all of them blithe and busy as so many bees. In addition to 
the care of her two papers and the duties of her office as our 
president, this indefatigable worker is writing a ' History of 
the Woman's Temperance Crusade.' 

"Mrs. Wittenmeyer is devoted to the advancement of her 
sex in usefulness and opportunity. First, last, an# always she 
is 'a icomarts woman.' Her editorials 'cry and spare not' 
against the tyranny of prejudice and custom. She tilts a free 
lance, and deals blows worthy of a more stalwart arm. 'The 
See Trial ' (' None so blind as those who won't ') was the occa- 
sion of several cogent arguments from her pen, to prove that 
women ' have a write to preach or speak in the pulpit,' and 
she has recently added to the larger of the two editions of her 
paper a department headed, ' Pulpit of the Christian Woman,' 



614 THE TEUE PATH ; 

in which a ' sermon' appears monthly from the pen of some 
one of the rapidly growing sisterhood of evangelists. 

" The crusade spirit abides with Mrs. Wittenmeyer ; the 
Gospel work is her delight, and her hymn of ' Victory,' writ- 
ten for our convention at Newark, embodies her declaration 
of faith as a temperance reformer. The first verse of this 
hymn forms a fitting close to this imperfect sketch : — 

" The Lord is our refuge and strength, 
His promises never can fail, 
We've learned the sweet lesson at length, 
His grace over sin can prevail. 

" In the sweet by-and-by 

We will conquer the demon of rum; 
In the sweet by-and-by 

The kingdom of heaven will come." 

At the national convention of the Woman's Christian Tem- 
perance Union in Chicago Mrs. Wittenmeyer was for the third 
time elected its president. 

The following address by * this forcible, straightforward 
female orator, at a convention of the National Christian Tem- 
perance Union, will not fail to be read with interest : 

" I have been trying to abridge my remarks, to formulate 
my creed on the temperance question in a brief sentence. I 
very carefully and prayerfully read the Liquor Dealer^ Ga- 
zette every week, and I have made up my mind that I am in 
favor, on general principles, of everything that liquor dealers 
are opposed to. 

" I am in favor of local option. It seems to be a very dem- 
ocratic thing. I can hardly understand how an American man 
can be so mean as to sell liquor in the face of law and the ex- 
press public sentiment of the community. I am in favor of 
civil damage laws. I think that when men rob the community 
and destroy property and life they ought to pay for it, and 
pay well for it ; and if they kill people they ought to be hung 
for it. I am opposed to license, and in favor of prohibition. 



0E 5 GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 615 

I never could understand, though I have given much thought 
to the subject, and I do not still understand, how the mere 
putting a thing that is wrong on the statute books makes it 
right. 

" Because men, as I have seen them, put their feet upon the 
back of their desks in legislative halls, and smoke their cigars 
till the whole ceiling is almost hid with a cloud of tobacco 
smoke, and vote for license laws, that does not make it right. 
Then I am in favor of the Crusade. I think that it is well un- 
derstood that women compose about one-half of the inhab- 
itants of this republic ; that we have an interest and ought to 
have a say in this matter. None have suffered so much as 
women, and they are suffering still. I am glad that I have 
been climbing these last years the hills of hope. I have got 
up where these sweet singers [the Hutchinsons] are ; for I 
can see the good time coming in the near future. 

" I had the privilege a few weeks ago of saying this to the 
governor of Pennsylvania — and he is a very fine-looking man, I 
ought to say as I pass along. He knew that a hundred of the 
first ladies in the State of Pennsylvania were going to visit 
him. He stood by the mantel-piece in his great parlor, sup- 
porting himself, and looking like a bit of statuary. He had 
braced himself up against the mantel-piece for the shock. 
Well, it was a shock. I am not going to enter on the course 
of argument that took twenty-five minutes of the best speak- 
ing that I ever did in my life or ever expect to do again. But 
I said to him this : 6 If you take from us local option,' — for we 
were there to protest against the repeal of the local-option law 
— ' we will give you within the next political decade prohibi- 
tion.' I said to him, and I may throw out the hint here, ' We 
hold the balance of power.' The boys are just about what 
their mothers make them, and the men are only boys of larger 
growth. 

"The Woman's National Christian Temperance Union — 
which is a co-laborer in this field, and reaches out both hands 
to co-operate with this organization (as the secretary of this 



616 THE TRUE PATH; 

society knows very well) — is taking hold of the children with 
a purpose to save the next generation, and bring them up to 
be more temperate, more truthful, and more honorable, if they 
should happen to be sent to our legislative halls, than the 
present incumbents. 

" Well, I can give some reason to-night for the hope that is 
within me ; for I look very hopefully on this national move- 
ment of the women. 

" Though woman's hands are weak to fight, 
Their voices are strong to pray, 
And with fingers of faith they'll open the gate 
To a brighter, better day. 

"I can give you some reason, it seems to me, why the Lord 
has called this mighty force into the field for more active 
work now than in the past, because it seems to me that this is 
a movement under divine direction. 

" The first reason is because God chooses the weak things 
of the world to confound the mighty. You know we have 
always been called weak. We did not like it very much ; we 
want to be strong like our brothers, and when they called us 
the weaker vessels we did not exactly understand it. But the 
weakest ware that we have on our tables is the finest and most 
costly. We are looking into those passages of Scripture w4th 
enlightened eyes. We did not understand that all the great 
movements in nature, all the great moving powers, are the 
silent forces, the little things ; and as we come to think about 
it, it is not the great clumsy instruments that can do the best 
execution, after all. 

" Now, these men — and all honor to these temperance work- 
ers — have been using the plow. They have been plowing 
around this tree of evil, while we women (and you know we 
go right at a thing) come up with the ax in our hands, and 
lay it at the root of this tree. We intend to cut and slash, 
woman-fashion, until there is not a root or branch left. We 
are so weak that we are forced to trust God and to lean upon 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPEBAltfCE. 617 



His almighty arm, from whence cometh. our strength. A great 
many women in this land during the last year have come near 
enough to Jesus to touch the hem of his garment, and feel the 
mighty outflow of power that comes from divine contact. It 
seems to me that the women during this last year have fol- 
lowed more closely in the footsteps of the blessed Christ than 
ever women did since the Maries followed Him up Calvary. 
Women of all denominations are clasping hands around the 
cross, with one prayer going up to God, as from one heart. 
The Quakers are singing beautifully. At the Massachusetts 
State convention, the other day, the Quaker president started 
all the tunes. Our Presbyterian ladies are waxing eloquent in 
the presentation of this subject ; and so, forgetting our 
denominational differences, we join hands and hearts for 
glorious work in this contest. But there are other reasons. 

" You know it has been said that woman's work was never 
done, and we thought that it was an insinuation that we were 
not very industrious ; but we have come to understand it 
better now. I have been led to ask : l Why is it that woman's 
work is never done ?' I see *that men work about so many 
hours, and then they quit ; they do not work any more, not 
because all the work of the world has been done up, but be- 
cause, I suppose, they grow weary. But women never grow 
weary ; they work on and on ; they are tireless in their ener- 
gies. Then, you know, it has been said that when a woman 
will she will, and when she won't she won't. Well, now, there 
is deep meaning in these old sayings, and they mean just 
about this to us now : that women flever weary in good 
works ; that if a thing can be done, if it is within the range 
of human possibilities, they will do it ; and they have such 
will in great moral movements that they cannot be intimi- 
dated, or discouraged, or bribed. 

" In all the contests of last winter, when Congress and our 
State legislatures were in session, and our women were going 
up to appeal to the law-makers — for our blows are not aimed 
at the drunkards, but at the rum-sellers and the manufac- 



618 THE TRUE PATH ; 

turers, and the law-makers who shield them — when they have 
been going up to present their case, I have never yet heard of 
a bribe being offered. The liquor men are wise. 

" But there is another reason. They have the moral cour- 
age. It is perfectly wonderful to me how these women talk. 
They talk right out in meeting, and tell about their pastor, 
about their church, and about the members of the church ; 
and the things that were covered and hid away are being un- 
covered. They have the moral courage to say what they 
think. Now, perhaps I cannot better explain this than by 
telling a little incident. Some of you know what it is to 
stand in the presence of the enemy's guns — what it is to 
stand where the shot and the shell come over. That is physi- 
cal courage. I know all about that kind of courage, for I 
have come near being shot more than a hundred times, and 
know the ring of all sorts of destructive missiles. That is 
one kind of courage. But I have come to know, within the 
last eighteen months, that there is a higher style of courage 
than that. 

"A few months ago some ladies were visiting saloons — 
(and I tell you it takes more -courage to go into these saloons, 
and stand in the presence of the liquor dealers, and protest, in 
the spirit of the Gospel, against the traffic, than it does to 
stand up and take the chance of a random shot and shell) — 
they were visiting saloons in Jacksonville, Illinois. They had 
visited all the saloons but one, and the good, kind brethren 
advised them not to visit that saloon, as the dealer was a very 
violent man, and would, perhaps, do violence to them. 

"They thought and prayed about it, and one day, when 
they wore in the church praying, there came down upon them 
the mighty constraining influences of the divine Spirit, and 
they rose up as One to go out and visit that saloon. Weil, 
the liquor dealer had been expecting them for several days, 
and when he saw them coming, he threw his door wide open, 
and stood in the door, with a pistol in his hand. He held it 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. * 619 

out ; they marched right on, and as they approached very 
near, he said — 

" ' Ladies, if you undertake to come into my saloon, I will 
shoot the first woman who undertakes it.' 

" Well, they never knew exactly how it was, but a young 
lady of the company, as if constrained by a divine impulse, 
sprang up and stood beside him, singing, 

" l Never be afraid to work for Jesus, 
Never be afraid. ' 

" Somehow his arm got weak ; the pistol hung by his side ; 
tears came into his eyes ; he stepped back, and took a seat in 
the saloon. They went in and sung and prayed to their 
hearts' content. That is what I call the highest style of cour- 
age ; and it is being displayed throughout the length and 
breadth of the land. 

" I do not believe that it is within the range of our language 
to portray the evils that grow out of the liquor traffic. If 
anybody can do that, it is Mr. Gough, and I am going to give 
way to him pretty soon. 

" O, I remember as I stand here to-night that there are 
women hid away in the palaces of this great wicked city, 
whose hearts are breaking under silks, and there are other 
women who are hid away in garrets and cellars, whose hearts 
are breaking under rags. There is not a, mother before me 
who has not, at times, a sinking of heart lest this evil may 
come nigh her dwelling. And who shall measure a mother's 
love or a mother's anxiety ? It is the one pure, true thing on 
earth. It did not go down in Eden. It was the master-gift 
that came with motherhood; and when the mother has her 
child in her arms, and it reaches up its dimpled fingers to 
touch her cheek with its velvet touch of love, like the rod of 
Moses, it opens a fountain that will never cease to flow. 

" My boy that stands by my' side is mine to-day, and he will 
be mine forever. The children that went out to follow the 
Lamb whithersoever he goeth, and join the song of the re- 



620 THE TEUE PATH ; 

deemed like the sound of many waters, are mine, and will be 
mine forever. O, what anxiety and interest the mothers of 
this land feel lest their sons, so beloved, should be overcome 
by this evil ! And there are mothers lingering to-day about 
the jails. Why, our jails are filled with the victims of this 
vile traffic. 

" I was speaking in Wheeling not many months ago, and I 
understood before I commenced speaking that there were a 
good many liquor dealers in the audience. I was so glad ; it 
always helps me so much. After the meeting was over a gen- 
tleman came to me and said : — 

" ' Madam, if you go on and have success, you will break up 
my business.' 

" I said, c I hope I will, if you are a liquor dealer.' 

" ' No, I am not a liquor dealer, but I keep the jail, and that 
is about the same thing.' 

" Our jails would be empty but for this traffic. Not long 
ago I was in a jail. I am not going to detain you with a de- 
scription of a jail ; but if you want to feel more interest in the 
temperance cause than ever you did, just visit your police 
courts and your jails, and you will have something to quicken 
your interest. I was in a jail in Ohio. There were, perhaps, 
twenty men in the outer court, and as many in the inner 
prison, little dark places with narrow walls, where they were, 
confined in dungeons worse than Barnum keeps his wildest 
animals in. As I went up to speak to them, I was obliged to 
thrust my two fingers (I could not get the three fingers 
through) between the iron bars. I wanted to shake hands with 
them. I found, as I looked into those dark cells, that they 
were all young men, and learned that every one (except one) 
of them was there because of crimes committed under the in- 
fluence of liquor, and some of them were very young. I 
pushed my fingers through the iron bars, and pressed my face 
against them to look in. I felt my two fingers clasped with a 
tight grasp, and, looking closely, I saw a boy there not seven- 
teen years old. As he held on to my finger-tip I said, ' You 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 621 

are very young to be here !' and his lip quivered. He had 
such an innocent face my heart was moved. I said, c Have 
you got a mother ?' He said — 

" ' No, ma'am ; my mother died when I was a baby.' 

" O ! what a story of heart-hunger, neglect, and temptation 
that little sentence revealed to me. I said — 

" ' Have you got a father ?' and he answered : 

" ' Well, I might just as well have had no father ; he did 
not care for anything but whisky. I don't know wkere he is ; 
I expect he is dead.' 

" O, what a sad story ! and yet it is repeated all over this 
land. I need not take you out of your own city for instances 
of crime and cruelty. Only last Sunday morning a drunkard's 
wife walked the streets of Jersey City for more than two hours, 
unfit to appear in it, without proper clothing, with two little 
children clinging to her skirts, having no home, and without 
a friend in the wide world. Rum has robbed her of every- 
thing, and left her wandering a castaway in the streets ; and 
she carried a dead baby in her arms only three weeks old. 
And these things are so common that we forget or lose the 
sense of their horribleness. 

"I ought to have said, by way of showing the amount of 
courage a woman can have, that my very presence here is the 
biggest argument that I ever heard of. That I should be 
speaking in the hearing of the eloquent man who is to address 
you in a few minutes is a perfect wonder to me ; for I have 
sat in the audience many times, when he has been speaking, 
and thought he was the prince of orators. 

" I just want to say, in conclusion, that the Woman's Na- 
tional Temperance Union have organized in all the Northern 
States of the Union except four, and they are now arranging 
for that. All this side of the Missouri river we are organiz- 
ing, more thoroughly than any set of politicians ever organ- 
ized, by States and congressional districts, down to little 
school districts. We are not in politics, we want you to under- 



622 THE TKTJE PATH; 

stand ; but we are determined, whatever party goes up or 
goes down, that the rum power shall go down. 

We are not trusting in our own strength. Some of us have 
stood where the Revelator stood when he saw the golden cen- 
ser before the throne ; and the voice of prayer, from the At- 
lantic to the Pacific, is going up every day from the women of 
our Union. We are encouraged to believe that our prayers 
will be heard. 

" We have wonderful encouragement in the work. Jesus 
has made it very plain. I only want to call attention to one 
of His beautiful lessons— about the unjust judge. It seems to 
me He went down just as low in the scale of human depravity 
as He could go to bring up that unjust judge ; because, if 
there is one man meaner than another, it is the man who un- 
dertakes to weigh out justice, and then takes bribes and deals 
unjustly. He was not only an unjust man, but he was an 
infidel and did not believe in God. He was not only an infidel, 
but he was a reckless fellow, who did not care for his fellow- 
men. He had sunk so low that he did not care what men 
thought of him. Well, to this man came a woman. She was 
poor ; she had no money to give him ; she had not any friends 
to help her. She had no great, eloquent words or arguments 
on her lips when she came, but she said, ' Avenge me of mine 
enemy.' She cried after him and followed him ; and yet, 
although he cared not for God, neither regarded man, yet 
because this woman cried unto him and troubled him, he said 
he would avenge her. And will not God, our just God, avenge 
His own elect, who are crying unto Him day and night ? 
Verily, He will. So we are lifting our cry ; and we remember 
that we have an Advocate with the Father that never lost a 
case." 

Hardly less notable than the career of Mrs. Wittenmeyer is 
the life of Miss Frances E. Willard, a woman alike notable 
for intellectual culture and for devotion to philanthropy. 
We cannot do better than give the graphic sketch published 
in the Boston Globe : 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 623 

" Much of the ■ success which has attended the women's 
meetings which are held daily at the Berkeley street church, 
is due to the modest and effective leadership of Miss Frances 
E. Willard. 

" As Miss Willard is comparatively a stranger in Boston, 
all attainable particulars regarding her life and work will be 
of interest. 

" She has for some years been a leader in the temperance 
work among the women of the West, and, judging from her 
success in Boston, her influence for good will be as marked 
here as where her life-work hitherto has been wrought. 

" Miss Frances E. Willard was born near Rochester, 1ST. Y., 
and was graduated at the North-western Female College, near 
Chicago, in 1853. She is of New England parentage, and is 
descended from a race of teachers, being herself possessed of 
no common talent for the instruction of the young. Her 
alma-mater commanded her services for some time, and in 
186 7 Miss Willard was chosen preceptress of Genesee Wes- 
leyan Seminary, at Lima, N. Y. This responsible position she 
held for four years. In 1861 she was called to the presidency 
of the college for women, established in connection with the 
North-western University, near Chicago. She was the first 
woman elected in this country to be the president of a college, 
and her work has demonstrated the fitness of the choice be- 
yond all cavil. In 1869, Miss Willard, in company with her 
life-long friend, Miss Kate A. Jackson, of Paterson, N. J., 
made an extended foreign tour, being abroad nearly two 
years, and visiting Europe, Syria, and Egypt. Since 1874 
Miss Willard has frequently spoken in public on educational 
and temperance topics, and always with success. Besides 
numerous contributions to the press, she published in 1864 
a book called ■ Nineteen Beautiful Years,' a tribute to a de- 
ceased sister, which was warmly commended. Of Miss Wil- 
lard's earnest labor in connection with the revival work of 
Messrs. Moody and Sankey it is unnecessary to speak. Its 
results speak for themselves, and the promise for a continu- 



624 THE TRUE PATH; 

ance of the divine blessing in the woman 2 s meeting is very 
bright." 

The following is a Bible lesson by this accomplished lady : 
" Let us turn to the tenth chapter of Luke, and the twenty- 
fifth verse : 

" ' And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, 
saying, Master, w T hat shall I do to inherit eternal life? He 
said unto him, What is written in the law ? how readest thou ? 
And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God 
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy 
strength, and with all thy mind ; and thy neighbor as thyself. 
And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right ; this do, and 
thou shalt live. But he, willing to justify himself, said unto 
Jesus, And who is my neighbor ? And Jesus answering said, 
A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell 
among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded 
him, and departed, leaving him half dead ; and by chance 
there came down a certain priest that w T ay ; and when he saw 
him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, 
when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed 
by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he jour- 
neyed, came where he was, and when he saw him, he had com- 
passion on him. And went to him, and bound ur *iis wounds, 
pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and 
brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the 
morrow, when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave 
them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him ; and 
whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will 
repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was 
neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves ? And he said, 
He that showed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, 
Go, and do thou likewise.' 

"There is no commentary that gives at all the clearness of 
the glory and beauty of the law of God so well as does this 
parable ; but I thought to-day, perhaps, to have a commentary 
of the actual experiences of something that has been done in 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 625 

these later limes, analogous to what was done in that parable : 
something that has been done in these temperance meetings, 
and which has been such a help to many of us — I hope to all 
of us — would be as well. Not much has been said to young 
women of the beauty, or privilege perhaps I should say, which 
there is for them in this world. I have wished that from the 
lips of young women we might hear of the blessedness of car- 
rying this temperance Gospel to those who drink and to those 
who sell. The girls bore a grand part in that Crusade work. 
The part they bore has not been much heralded ; it was just 
the outgrowth of the sentiment of that time. In Cleveland I 
heard of three young ladies who went with three young gen- 
tlemen, and they were in the habit of taking wine. They went 
out into the country one day to spend one afternoon something 
like a picnic, and when they were preparing for lunch, the 
gentlemen brought on wine, to place upon the table. But 
these ladies looked with new eyes and new feelings upon this 
wine now, and they said, 'We cannot sit down at a table where 
there is wine ; won't you please put it away? 5 And they said, 
c Certainly, we will put it away if you wish it, and w T e will not 
take any ourselves.' Thus, standing there true, they won 
their victory. 

u I was in the Palmer House after one of our evening 
meetings, with a friend, and I saw there a party of half a 
dozen ladies and gentlemen, and I saw the waiter bringing 
wine, and one of the young girls blushed, and it required some 
courage to say as she did : ' Gentlemen, I am sure you will be 
willing that we should have something else not quite so strong.' 
Courtesy, gallantry, and kindliness forbade their refusing, and 
these girls, preaching there their sermon and standing firm, 
won their victory. 

" In Delaware other things have happened which I might re- 
late to you. A young lady, educated in a French conservatory 
of music and cultured to the highest possible point of ex- 
pression, went out upon the street in this holy work, and her 
sweet voice found entrance where otherwise the doors would 



626 THE TEUE PATH ; 

have been shut. And her friends said to her, c Don't do so 
much ; you will use your voice all up. Just rest and wait 
awhile.' But she said : 'My voice, and any thing that culture 
can add, is none too good to lay upon the shrine of such 
labor.' 

" A Christian young lady in Cincinnati told me that she 
never spent such delightful days in her life as ' going from 
rum-shop to rum-shop with grandmother.' She was very 
wealthy and very cultured. And in one of the rum-shops she 
met some of her tenants, and as she asked them to sign over 
to Him, and to put their names down upon this pledge in 
significance of their surrender to God, one of them said : ' I 
think, Miss Jessie, you have never signed the pledge.' He said 
this in a sneering way. The man was infinitely below her 
in what we call the social scale. She said, i True ; I never 
thought of that. Give me the pencil. We never have wine 
at our table, and I never tasted it, but if it will help you to 
sign, I will sign,' and her autograph went down upon that 
dirty paper along with the names of those rough men. 

" In one place — the only place, I believe, where they met 
with such opposition — a gruff man held a pistol in his hand 
and pointed it at them. Some of them had not sufficient 
moral courage, but this young lady quite knew what to do. 
She went right up to his side, singing, 'Never be afraid to 
speak for Jesus.' And that band of noble women went in 
and held a meeting in that place, and that man bowed before 
God and gave his heart to Him." 

" The key-note in all this work, in all these girls' hearts, was 
Jesus. I borrow the w r ords from one of these clear sisters of 
Israel. When her aristocratic friends importuned her to go 
to fashionable dances and parties instead of going to these 
drinking-saloons, she would answer : i Anywhere that my 
dear and only brother, now ruined, can go to drink, there I 
will go to pray.' " 

"We wish that every body would get converted. It is the 
only true life — to be born of God. The world is not all con- 



OE, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 627 

verted yet, though Christianity is the simplest problem that 
man has to encounter. There is no government so grand and 
so incalculably satisfactory to the Lord God as the reign of 
temperance. Within the sacred influence of school and church 
there nestle in this broad land of ours, protected and covered 
by the star-spangled banner, 250,000 rum-shops. To carry 
out the business of these groggeries requires 550,000 of 
America's citizens. The net revenue is $650,000,000. But 
that is not all. Seventy-five per cent, of all the murders in 
the country are committed through the influence of rum ; 
fifty per cent, of all the insanity in the country is the result of 
drink ; eighty-six per cent, of all the criminals in the land 
become such while staggering under a load of liquor ; ninety- 
six per cent, of all the drunken youths leave a fond but agon- 
ized mother's arms to go to the black perdition of strong 
drink. Every year 100,000 of our best and brightest men reel 
into eternity and a drunkard's grave. Every year the statis- 
tics tell us of 500,000 steady drinkers and a million moderate 
drinkers, and, last of all, there are millions of handsome, 
intelligent lads going tramp, tramp, tramp to a drunkard's 
destiny. The bar-room is but the school of American politics. 
Each year 100,000 drunkards go staggering up to the ballot- 
box to deposit the vote which shall elect to the responsible 
government of this mighty republic the candidate whom their 
drunken intelligence taught them to be the proper person. 
What a sad reflection this is for us to-night !" 

Miss Willard made a very eloquent appeal to her hearers to 
arouse themselves, and by their Christian endeavors free 
society and politics from this curse. 

" What has each one of you done ? Who has saved one 
human soul from the pit of the blackest darkness? You 
have taken from $50 to $500 per year from the liquor-dealers ; 
you have given to industry the strong arm and well-devel- 
oped muscles of mature manhood ; you have replaced 
the key-stone in the broken arch of home ; you have 
given to the commonwealth a conscientious ballot, and 



628 THE TRUE PATH; 

you have given to Christ's Church another member. Dear 
brother, you can have those shackles that bind you broken 
off if you will. No matter what your sin, Christ can 
break the shackles. I tell you, young men, that drunk- 
enness is the ripe fruit of moderate drinking. Give your- 
selves, then, on the side of total abstinence. If there 
are any here who do not feel the need of taking the 
step, I beseech them to do it, that they may set an example 
to their weaker brother. May you, one and all, know in your 
hearts the importance of total abstinence. I wish we could 
act as unitedly as our forefathers did. Men and women of 
New England, see the heritage your forefathers and fore- 
mothers have given you ! How true it is that 'now is the 
accepted time !' There is a time for every purpose and every 
work in this world. The time has reached us. The time to 
work has come. How many in this assembly are pledged on 
the side of total abstinence ? I ask those who are not, in the 
name of God, to place themselves there. Sometimes, they 
say, a woman's fingers can undo bars and bolts in the human 
heart which men cannot move. I think this is so, and if it is, 
sisters, why can't we do all that our influence will enable us to 
overcome this terrible tide of horror? Many of you have 
heard the story of the confession a murderer made in his cell 
to a Christian minister. He said : " If people had only come 
to me before, and told me these things when my heart was 
young, my life might have been spared.' At last his sullen, 
tigerish, cold and hardened heart was broken by a woman, 
who by some little kindness found the door to his heart and 
the flood-gate to his tears. God help us, one and all, in 
Christ's dear name to participate in this glorious work !" 

Miss Wi Hard's farewell address at the close of the Moody 
meetings in Boston is thus reported in the Globe: — 

"I remember that Abraham Lincoln, in that address of his 
which we have heard so often in other years, tells a stoiy of 
the Orient. Once there was a young monarch, and upon his 
ascension to the throne he called all his wise men to come 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 629 

before him, his sages and his learned ones. And he said to 
them, 'I want you, between this .sunset and the next, to bring 
me some form or expression into which you shall condense the 
sum of your knowledge ; and I want you to bring to me an- 
other sentence which shall be applicable to every form of 
human expression ; which shall always be true, when, where, 
how, or by whom uttered.' And after he had said this he 
reminded them how swift and sure is the flash of the Damas- 
cus blade, and he made a gesture across the bowed necks of 
the sages, and they knew what was coming if they failed. 
They gathered together their old manuscripts and books, and 
they sat down in great distress and perturbation, but to study 
hard ; and by the time the morning had dawned, one of them, 
a young man, bright and keen, said, ' This is the sum of all 
knowledge — "perhaps." ' And they took this to the king, and 
he accepted this. But the hardest task was yet to come. 
Not one of them could answer it the first hour, and they feared 
and trembled. But one of the oldest of them, who had looked 
out upon human life, and who had learned its secrets and its 
sorrows, gave this sentence, and he found it, as you will find 
it, applicable to every possible circumstance : fc 'This, too, shall 
pass away. 5 We know that that is true, be it of great things 
or of little things. \Now, let us turn to a very different book, 
and look into Daniel, the seventh chapter and the fourteenth 
verse : — 

"'And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a 
kingdom, that all people, nations and languages, should serve 
him ; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall 
not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be de- 
stroyed.' 

" And now look at the thirteenth verse : — 

""'I saw in the night visions ; and, behold, one like the Son 
of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the 
Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.' 

"How I have wished that he 'might come near to me ! And 
again, turn to Hebrews^ twelfth chapter and the last verses •:— 



630 THE TRUE PATH ; 

" c Wherefore we, receiving a kingdom which cannot be 
moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God ac- 
ceptably, with reverence and godly fear : for our God is a 
consuming fire.' 

" That pronoun c we' seems to bring it right home to us. 

" ' The kingdom of God is within you.' 

" It is not some sweet persuading of the imagination ; it is 
that 6 God was made manifest in the flesh.' Then there is 
something in Mathew xxiv. 35 : — 

" ' Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall 
not pass away.' 

" This is reiterated in Mark xiii. 31. 

" In the twenty-third chapter of Luke he impresses this 
upon us for the third time. No matter who stops, no matter 
who comes or goes away, these words c shall not pass away.' 
May God put it into your hearts and minds to be studious of 
that which is able to save your souls from death. There are 
many other passages that it would be well for us to look at 
and talk about, in these last few days that are left us of this 
great reawakening. Christ is the end of it. In Romans x. 4, 
we read this : — 

" c For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to 
everyone that believeth.' 

" A great many people are saying that they are trying to 
act as well as they can ; they are trying to do all they know 
ft at is right ; but this is not what Christ says. He says he is 
* the end of the law for righteousness to everyone that be- 
lieveth.' Do you believe on the Lord Jesus Christ as your 
Redeemer and Master? Some of us are thinking of the 
things that pass away ; others of the things that will never 
pass away. O, may God help us to study those things that 
do not pass away ! 

"It is thirteen weeks since I began this work, and eleven 
weeks since I came to you a stranger. I want to say some- 
thing to you of what it has been to me to be here with 
you. I know that I am speaking to my friends, to sisters 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 631 

in the dear name of Christ, to those whom I love for their 
works' sake, and who love me for my works' sake ; and 
for that sweeter, but not holier or higher motive — I love 
for your own sake. When Mr. Moody first spoke to me 
about coming to Boston, to see what I could do here, 
it was a great surprise to me. I had been in Brooklyn, 
organizing temperance unions ; I had work there to do, and I 
did not know whether I ought to come. And when one whom 
I have honored and trusted, but had never seen but twice, 
said, ' Let us ask God about it,' if I have known an earthly in- 
spiration of sympathy, it has been the prayer that he offered 
then. He asked God to show me whether I ought to go or 
not, and that if there was any word that I could speak that 
would benefit any one, it would be made known to me. 
When I went to my little cottage home I asked my mother, as 
I always do, and have done since my lips could form words, 
' What do you think about it, and would you like to have it 
so ?' My mother is seventy-three years of age, and I am her 
only daughter, but her first words were, e My child, do as the 
Lord says.' 

" And so, with my mothers blessing, and with that good 
man's prayer, and with my own belief, I came, and we have 
labored lovingly together, and I believe and hope that God's 
blessing has come down upon our work. Dear friends, Mr. 
Moody said something else to me then. He said, ■ I cannot 
help thinking of the great magazine power there is in the 
hearts and consciences of the New England women. If they 
could only get hold of the word of God, what a power they 
would be !' There is no brain and heart so susceptible of God 
as the brain and heart that is full of God's word. This, then, 
is my farewell message, even the words of the blessed Master 
himself. Search the scriptures ; learn how to trust them for 
your own safety. They are an ark in which to sail over the 
mountains of sin and sorrow on the floods of God's mercy as 
the ark of Noah sailed on the flood of his wrath. And then 
learn to use them to rescue the perishing ; for, unlike that day 
of doom, this is the day of grace." 



632 THE TKUE PATH ; 

We have thus enlarged on the temperance reform element 
as represented by woman, in connection with the Murphy and 
Reynolds movements ; for the former has had a strong alli- 
ance with the latter. The tw r o great temperance evangelists 
would have fallen far short of the blessed results they have 
wrought, had it not been for organized woman's work, prior 
to, and in connection with their efforts. With that enthusi- 
asm, and patient pertinacity so characteristic of their sex, and 
the shrewd use of social influence, whereby woman can work 
alike results of good and evil, the temperance unions have 
been creating an atmosphere of public sentiment ; preparing, 
so to speak, the fuel which only awaited kindling to flame into 
a conflagration. Dr. Reynolds has worked systematically in 
connection with these organizations, and frankly concedes the 
debt he ov/es to their active co-operation. But when we study 
the Murphy movement, we find the feminine element hardly less 
strongly marked, through in a less direct way. We can hardly 
over-estimate the stringent force that woman in her varied 
relations of mother, sister, wife and sweetheart, has brought 
to bear, to fix and consolidate the effect of the orator's appeals. 

From the earliest days to the present time the curse of alco- 
hol has rained ruin, misery, degradation and crime, on w T eak 
and struggling humanity. History, which is simply " philoso- 
phy teaching by example," is full of the most eloquent and 
pregnant illustrations of the curse wrought by the love of 
stimulants. The Biblical account of Noah's discovery of the 
fascination and the effects of wine, typifies the fact that even 
while the race was in its infancy, it commenced to be coiled 
in the folds of that monstrous appetite, which has grown with 
civilization, assuming constantly new phases, and been the 
fatal root of the most terrible crimes. Were the element of 
alcohol eliminated from the hidden causes that have made the 
records of humanity black and gloomy tragedies, it would 
sweep away the larger share of the atrocities that revolt the 
student in his investigations. The fall of empires, as well as 
the ruin of individuals, may, in numerous instances, be 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 633 

directly traced fco the cursed appetite for strong drink. Since 
the first dawn of civilization down to the present time, men 
have murdered their friends as well as their enemies, ruined 
their families, wasted their substance, in a word, transformed 
themselves from rational men into raving demons, in obedience 
to this deadly craving. From the monarch on his throne to 
the peasant in his hut, the insidious poison has wrought its 
fiendish work, and introduced moral chaos, lawlessness, 
cruelty, and all forms of evil, where thrift, order and virtue, 
but for this fell agency, would have been triumphant. It will 
be useless to enumerate illustrations of this fact from the 
annals of the past. It is one of those sad truisms of history, 
sown thick with illustrations through every age, written in 
plague, murder, rapine, and all the blackest forms of unbridled 
selfishness and passion. Human villany has always sought the 
alliance of alcohol, when it would consummate its projects, to 
stifle the last faint protests of conscience and enkindle the more 
ferocious instincts which reveal the traces of the wild beast 
lingering in the human breast. This form of statement may 
be called glittering generalization ; but it is designed to call 
attention to a fact, which most essayists and historians from 
the philosophic Buckle down, have lost sight of, or perhaps de- 
liberately overlooked, that among the most potent factors that 
have entered into the problem of the human race, the love oi 
stimulants, of which alcohol is perhaps the chief, has an evil 
pre-eminence. 

It is a significant and striking fact, that it is only within 
the last two centuries that the moral sense of humanity has 
awakened to an alarming sense of the real gist of this tre- 
mendous question, and attempted to grapple with it practically. 
In spite of the innumerable facts staring men in the face, the 
love of wine and other forms of stimulant had previously en- 
listed in its cause the specious pleading of so-called philosophy, 
the glowing strains of poetry, and the beauties of art ; nay, 
it had even dragged religion into a sacreligious alliance, and 
daringly called on the oracles of God to set the seal of Divine 



634 THE TRUE PATH ; 

approval on the most malign agency which has blasted the 
bodies and souls of mankind. In a barbaric age it is easy to 
understand the lack of moral distinctions, but it is more diffi- 
cult to fully realize the utter want of appreciation, which 
made the fine civilizations of the ancient world associate 
drunkenness rather with something poetic, refined, and 
ennobling, than stigmatize it as the basest and most danger- 
ous appetite which has devastated the hearts and hopes of the 
race. From the sublime Homer down to the dainty and licen- 
tious Anacreon among the Greeks ; from Ennius, who sang 
the praises of a virtuous country life, to the wise and witty 
Horace, among the Romans, poetry crowned the reeling Bac- 
chus with honors no less than Minerva, the deity of wisdom. 
The great philosophers and moralists did not hesitate to in- 
voke wine as the genial friend of man, and use their strong- 
est logic to strengthen its hold over the human understand- 
ing. The same callous and terrible disregard of this frightful 
enemy of virtue, health, and public welfare, continued for 
many ages after the victory of Christianity over the old forms 
of religious error. And it is a sad fact that while the most 
pure and blessed of religions was interpreted as tacitly 
indorsing the use of strong drink as a beverage, it was left 
for the fanatical Arab prophet and reformer, Mohammed, to 
brand with his strongest curses even the tasting of the deadly 
potion which steals away the brains and consciences of men. 

Mr. Leckey, whose work on the history of Morals attracted 
so much attention a few years ago, acutely observes tkat^ 
while the priests, philosophers, and moralists of former ages 
proclaimed the general ethical truths with so much clearness 
and eloquence, they left the attempt to grapple with and rem- 
edy the practical every-day evils of life to the present utili 
tarian age. Pre-eminently is this the ease with temperance 
reform, one of the most magnificent movements in its series of 
waves, w'.iich this nineteenth century, great as it is in improve- 
ments relating alike to the morale intellectual, and physical 
man, has known. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 635 

The evil of intoxication, unlike many other vices, has far- 
reaching roots of destruction and misery. It propagates itself 
by the most insidious feelers, and masks its dangers at the outset 
by alluring the unwary with appeals to some of the most de- 
lightful and worthy instincts. It borrows the arguments of 
society and friendship, and offers the fatal cup with honeyed 
smiles and words. The number of victims who have been 
led into the habit of drinking, thence to drunkenness, crime, 
and utter ruin by the hand of beauty, of kindly feeling, and 
regard for the so-called social amenities, is simply numberless. 
One may fancy Satan, the genius of evil, laughing with demo- 
niac glee, as he witnesses the most dreadful of all the agencies 
for the devastation of body and soul, putting on the vestments 
of an angel of light, and sapping the dignity and triuh of 
manhood with pleas drawn from the armories of God. All 
the readers of this book will recognize the force of the fact, 
as old and threadbare as it may seem. A lovely woman, pure 
and good in all her instincts, offers a visitor a glass of wine 
in obedience to a common conventionality, with her thought- 
lessness a mere matter of form. She little thinks in doing this 
seemingly trifling courtesy, she is opening the gates, per- 
haps, which lead the victim down on the broad road of ruin, 
till he ends in the purlieus of the groggery and the brothel 
an outcast and a wreck. A dear friend asks one whom, may- 
hap, he loves as a brother, to share the social glass with him, 
not believing that the cup holds a potion more malignant and 
terrible than so much prussic acid. For in the former case, 
the issues not only of time, but eternity, hang in the balance. 
So the sweetest impulses of the human heart have been 
wrenched out of their sphere to allure the weak from their 
hold on the one anchor of safety, total abstinence. 

A wise Spanish proverb says, that wine is made up of the 
blood of three animals, the ape, the bull, and the hog, thereby 
typifying the different stages of intoxication — foolish chatter 
and laughter, when the wits have gone astray ; ferocity, which 
uses the knife or the pistol with unsparing hand ; and the 



636 THE TRUE PATH ; 

brutish sleep, which expunges the last semblance of man- 
hood. 

Read the newspaper records that make the columns of the 
press a red catalogue of crime sickening to the last degree. 
How often does the eye behold such a story of wretched sin 
as this : 

" A. B., a gentlemanly-looking man,, entered the saloon of 
John Smith, on X. street, in company with a friend, and drank 
several times at the bar. The two seemed in hilarious good 
humor and on the firmest terms of amity with each other. At 
last A. B. became quarrelsome and noisy. His friend, fearing 
some disturbance, sought to persuade him to go home. The man, 
intoxicated to the verge of fury, used the most insulting and 
opprobious terms, and became utterly unmanageable. His 
friend took him by the arm and tried to lead him out into the 
street. At last the maniac, raving and frothing at the mouth, 
drew a dirk and drove it into the heart of the unfortunate man. 
He was arrested by the police and lodged in the city prison on 
the charge of murder. 5 ' 

Let us go further and look behind the curtain in this typi- 
cal example. A. B. was a man doing a good business, happy 
in his social and family relations. Perhaps he left home with 
the pure kisses of a devoted wife and sweet children on his 
lips, to be gone for a short absence, and expecting soon to 
return to the embraces of the beloved ones. Hour after hour 
the patient wife waits for the return of her husband. At 
last comes the thunderbolt from a clear sky. The partner of 
her being, the father of her babes, the idol of her heart, is 
bolted within a felon's cell, and the shadow of the gibbet 
looms up in the distance. At one dreadful stroke, the happi* 
ness of a household is shattered, and a man who might have 
been an ornament of life made into an accursed wretch. Such 
is tlaB work of the demon, alcohol. 

Is this called an exaggerated example ? No ! it is but one 
of many such instances which make the newspaper reader shud- 
der, for it is being constantly repeated with variations as infinite 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 63V 



as the complexities of human life. It has been said that no man 
becomes bad all at once, but only by slow gradations of vice. 
It is the exclusive privilege of alcohol and its brother poisons 
to have the power in many cases to transform the good man 
instantly into the devil. The mad Malay, who runs amuck 
butchering right and left those in his way, has brother exam- 
ples in more civilized regions. But even more general unhap- 
piness and vice is caused when the work of alcohol is more 
slow than in the instance we have cited. 

The victim of the appetite falls from bad to worse, perhaps 
with many occasional lapses into virtuous resolutions, which' 
prove too weak for the force of habit. His family are 
deserted and ill-treated, subjected to a slow torture for years. 
His wife fades away from rosy health and happiness into an 
attenuated, sad-eyed spectre, and his children become ragged 
unkempt gutter-snipes, gamins of the street, with an almost cer- 
tainty of more than emulating his example. He finally dies 
foretasting hell, in the serpent evil of delirium tremens. Let us 
not laugh lightly at these things. They are not the occasional 
cases, which shock the mild philanthropist as he ruminates in 
his easy chair into saying with a complacent sigh : " How ter- 
rible, but I suppose they can't be helped, for human nature is 
so frail." 

No ! these are but citations of innumerable facts that stare 
us in the face in every street of a great city ; in corner grog- 
geries, sown as thick as dragon's teeth ; in haggard faces, 
bleary eyes, and tattered garments ; in dilapidated houses and 
filthy rookeries ; in crowded court-houses and jails ; in the 
unspeakable squalor, uncleanliness, wretchedness, blasphemy, 
sorrow and soul damnation, as well as bodily disease, which 
make whole acres of great cities a vast lazar-house of sin and 
horror. The imagination can hardly over-paint the picture, 
and the pen fails to find words to encompass the dire facts in 
fitting expression. What is ordinarily hyperbole gets shriv- 
eled into weak corpses of language when it seeks to find the 
fitting terms. 



638 THE TRUE PATH ; 

Yet wide-spread and deep-seated as is the appetite which 
wreaks such a curse, the signs of the time are hopeful. The 
poet Tennyson sings in the opening stanza of " In Memo- 



riam :" 



"I hold it one with him who sings 
On one clear harp of many tones, 
That man may rise on stepping-stones 
Of his dead self to higher things." 

The sky hats been brightening for the last century, and 
though the gleams of the rosy, auroral morning may be slow 
and faint in their increase, they are clear and plain to the 
patient watchman on the battlements. Let us compare the 
present century with the past, in the case of the Anglo-Saxon 
nations, for example. Not much more than a hundred years 
ago the crime of intemperance (for in view of its awful results 
it becomes more than a vice), was so much the rule in Great- 
Britain that the peasant was an habitual sot. Strong ale was 
as free in every cottage as water, and the laborer, the miner, 
the mechanic welcomed his evening at the pot-house as the 
pleasurable part of his hard and grinding lot. Every village 
was filled with paupers, and the poor-house crowded to excess. 
The working man rarely ended his day without being at least, 
somewhat intoxicated. Among the gentry the facts were even 
more patent. The dinner almost uniformly ended in debauch, 
and the three-bottle man was honored as one of the ornaments 
of society. Gentlemen regarded it as one of their duties to 
go to bed reeling drunk, and the victor in a protracted revel, 
who had drunk his companions under the table, was honored 
w T ith the smiles of the women, the approval of society, and the 
admiration of his fellows. From the topmost to the lowest 
layers of society, men, and oftentimes women, were saturated 
through and through with the love of and demand for wine, 
gin and beer. This is no extreme statement of the historical 
fact. Read the novels of a century since, those vivid social 
pictures of men and women as they were in all ranks, and the 



OE, GOSPEL TEjIPEKAiTCE. . 639 

moral to be drawn frightens one accustomed even to the sad 
truths of the present time. 

No less did the same fact hold in the American colonies, 
and even after the establishment of the republic. North and 
South the vice was a paramount social custom, and ministers 
of the gospel themselves regarded the daily use of stimulants 
as not only excusable, but a rational and proper thing. The 
laborer in the fields considered his employer as failing in his 
contract unless rum was furnished, and low tipping-shops, even 
in those days of cheap liquor, absorbed the earnings of the 
poor. The country innkeeper was one of the most important 
functionaries of the village, without whose important voice no 
political or social council was complete. The higher classes 
paraded a battalion of decanters on their sideboards, and the 
visitor who refused to drink the health of the host and hostess 
was branded as an ill-bred boor, not fit for polite circles. So 
the habit of drinking was most firmly intrenched in the hearts 
and customs of the community, and the advocate of temper- 
ance was looked on as an ignorant fanatic, not even to be 
honored with serious argument. 

Now let us turn to the present. It is a blessed fact that 
refined people, although they may not ignore or taboo the habit 
of drinking, regard drunkenness with open aversion or disgust. 
The total abstainer is regarded with esteem and admiration, 
even if his example be not emulated, and intoxication is 
stamped by law as being, not only not a palliation of, but 
adding a blacker hue to the wickedness of crime. The 
sideboard, loaded with its glittering burden of liquors and 
wines, is no longer a necessity of hospitality ; nay, it is to-day 
the rare exception. Society sees that it must at least in theory 
frown on the alliance of the drinking habit with the usages of 
polite life, and many fashionable assemblies occur, without 
the host thinking it necessary to furnish wine to his guests. 
The New Year's festival is rapidly emerging from the blight 
and disgrace, which a few years ago made the anniversary sad 
and ominous in spite of the spirit of general good fellowship 



640 THE TTIFE PATH ; 

pervading it ; and now the rivalry is not who shall make the 
most alluring display of wines, hut who shall furnish the 
strongest coffee and purest lemonade to the visitor. 

Above all, the church has dissolved its unholy alliance with 
alcohol, and now lifts its thunders, its pleadings, and persua- 
sions against the use of liquor in any form, as one of the cry- 
ing evils of the age. The ministers of God are no longer 
tipplers, and advocates of what is called with tremendous sar- 
casm rational drinking, but practisers as well as preachers of 
the virtue of entire abstinence. Chemistry and physiology 
have turned their powerful lenses on the scientific side of the 
question and reiterated with telling emphasis the indubitable 
fact that in the use of stimulants man has nothing to- expect 
but breaking down of body and brain. These are eloquent 
signs that encourage hope, and cheer the weary laborer in the 
cause of reform. The change is slow but sure, and though the 
disease is still wide-spread, deep-rooted, and sweeps hundreds 
of thousands yearly to a dishonored grave, the spirit of God 
is leavening the times and working toward a mighty victory. 

And now, what has caused all this ? The answer is simple. 
The moral atmosphere of the age is purer and stronger. With 
the increase of knowledge, the more careful study of social 
facts and statistics, the growing tendency of the age to refrain 
from mere theory and generalization, and grapple with details, 
there has come to be a solid conviction that this question of 
drunkenness is one of the terrible problems which society in 
very self-protection must solve. It is the mythic sphynx with 
its riddle and the inflexible alternative, " Explain me or I will 
destroy you." When to this is added the awakened religious 
sense, which now sees the truth in its genuine bearings, we can 
understand why the signs of the age are so full of promise. 

The traveler in our newer western communities has often 
had occasion to observe the following fact. During the early 
settlement, the country is infested with malarial fever. 
Hardly an inhabitant whose sallow face and chattering teeth 
do not betoken the subtile scourge which reeks from the 



OR, GOSPEL TKMPERAKCE. 641 

moist black soil, and the prairie-sloughs. After a while, con«> 
tinued cultivation and drainage dry up the marshy lands, and 
the warm sunlight permeates through the* earth, constantly 
turned up with plow and harrow. At last the poisonous ma- 
laria is destroyed and the air becomes pure and healthy. Com- 
munities pass through similar experiences in a moral sense. 
The swamps of ignorance and indifference born of lack of 
knowledge must be drained, before the moral atmosphere gets 
healthy. 

Side by side with this tendency to investigate, must grow 
the sense of necessity for investigation, the appreciation of 
the evil as it exists. The heart must be stirred as well as the 
intellect. The emotional side of temperance reform is one of 
its most vital elements. It is like the steam which moves 
mighty machinery. The illumination of knowledge must get 
its primary motive from some fire in the heart and soul. It is 
here that the religious element links itself with such potency 
to the scientific side of the temperance problem. It is here 
that the eloquence and passion of the orator kindle the inert 
mass, made callous and heavy by long habit ! The great waves 
of excitement, which so often sweep the land in connection 
with religious and moral movements, are essential factors. 

It is too much the tendency of those who pride themselves 
on being rational and philosophic, to decry what are called 
paroxysms. The formalist sneers at the Moody and Sankey 
revival as mere blaze without permanent fuel. So, too, we 
hear ridicule of such a magnificent movement as the Murphy 
Temperance Reform as a false and abnormal thing, whose 
effects are only traced in the fatal reaction which follows the 
high tension of the emotions after the exciting cause has ceased. 
Intelligent men in viewing things in this light fail to study 
essential facts in human nature. Brain must have the stimulus 
of heart, and unless the feelings are powerfully moved, it is in 
vain either in the case of the individual or the community to 
expect important changes. No man ever reformed himself, as 
the oyster recreates his shell, by a mere law of vital mechanism. 



642 THE TRUE PATH. 

It is in the light of such considerations as these that the 
Murphy and Reynolds movements and the Women's Tem- 
perance Unions get their significance and value. Such agen- 
cies not only kindle the heart but fire the intellect as well, and 
do more than all the tracts, essays, and scientific arguments in 
the world to strike the key-note of reform. As a remarkable 
phenomenon in the social history of our times, the recent tem- 
perance forces, which have been flooding and fertilizing the 
roots of good in our country, are worthy of the careful study 
of the philosopher ; as a fresh example of God's loving Provi- 
dence, as a great and blessed influence for the renovation of 
society they call forth the joy and congratulations of all the 
good and true spirits of the time. The names connected with 
these great movements will long be reverenced, and honored, 
for they have wrought a work as imperishable as brass or 
marble in the hearts of their fello\vs. What if many of the 
reclaimed men and women do relapse ; what if in some features 
of the work there be things that excite the ridicule of the 
shallow and frivolous ? The spirit of the Man of Nazareth un- 
derlies it, and its power will move on like a majestic flood. 
The solid and permanent results will remain long after its 
mere accidental characteristics shall have perished. 



OK, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 

and at its last business meeting added nearly a hundred 
members. 

" The club was organized by Dr. Henry A. Reynolds, Janu- 
ary 16, 1876, and the work has been carried on by the presi- 
dent of the club, Mr. William H. Blanchard, who gives all his 
time and talents to the cause. The club is practically and 
emphatically red ribbon in all its movements and machinery. 

" It has the idea of letting severely alone both politics and 
religious dogmas, and working for the reformation of men. It 
has been called the ' Banner Club ' of the State, not because 
of its numbers, but because of the unanimity and practical 
working of its members. They have just moved to elegant 
rooms on Maine street, near the old South Church." 

Stoneham was completely captured. The Boston Traveller, 
in reporting the work here, gives as follows the doctor's 
remarks : 

" Dr. Reynolds commenced by lamenting the absence of 
clergymen at the meeting, which was held at the hour of the 
usual Sunday evening service. He said the time of meeting 
must be changed. 

" Men have got to be saved ; and if there is any place where 
clergymen ought to be represented it is actively in the tem- 
perance movement. Rum is an obstacle at entrance to the 
church door. Our ministers, instead of preaching to the ves- 
tries half full of people, should preach to full houses, and they 
will do so if they can feel that the temperance work is only 
the forerunner of something better and higher. 

" It is this sort of practical work which is to be, and must be, 
done. Drunkards would form the best class in the community, 
were it not for the curse of rum. As a rule they have no pas- 
sion except rum, and it is that which causes them to commit 
crime. Rid your community of intoxicating drinks, and you 
will see how quickly crime will decrease among your people. 
Now they receive scolfs and kicks because they drink, when 
really they are a great deal better men than some who never 
drank a drop of liquor in their lives. 



THE TRUE PATH ; 

"You can't fail to see by my talk that I am a friend of the 
drunkard. The men who sit in this Reform Club to-night 
would not be here if they had been ridiculed and abused as 
scalawags. Take them as they are. not as they were once. I 
would not turn a cold shoulder to a discharged convict if I 
thought he had become a good citizen." 

The faucet through which the last drop of liquor in Lock- 
port had passed into the public street and gutter was then 
exhibited by the doctor, who said in a very eloquent and 
stirring manner .that he would like to have such a faucet from 
every town in the Union. 

" Now," the doctor continued, " I want to inform the rum- 
sellers that this movement means business, not for you, but 
for us. I have driven my stake for sixty thousand men in 
Massachusetts, and I am going to have them, too. We despise 
your business ; but if you will only sign the pledge and try to 
get out of it we will shake hands with you." 

Dr. Reynolds opened his work at Springfield, in June, 1876. 
The Republican of that city, reports the movement as follows: 
"Dr. Reynolds regards the club as a very promising one 
(it was only a club of thirty members), but still thinks Spring- 
field rather fallow ground for temperance work ; which tallies 
with the testimony of the liquor dealers and makers, that this 
city has more numerous and more elegant bar-rooms, anfl 
consumes more beer and liquor than any other city of its size 
in the State. The club does not include any very prominent 
citizens, but its members, of course, are in earnest, and hope to 
increase its numbers rapidly." 

Dr. Reynolds' work at Springfield was highly successful. 
The club here at first had only thirty-seven members ; but in 
a short while it increased to a membership of over four hun- 
dred. The meetings held under its auspices sometimes filled 
three large halls in different parts of the city. Every Sunday 
afternoon at three o'clock and also in the evening mass meet- 
ings were held in the Protestant churches, all of which gave 
the Reform Clubs and their members a most cordial welcome. 



OF., GOSPEL TEMPEBANCE. 

The following sterling counsel given by Dr. Reynolds to the 
East Boston Reform Club will be read with much interest : 
" You are to blame for not having a larger and more effective 
club. You ought to be self-constituted missionaries. Out of 
gratitude to God for your deliverance you ought to be the first 
to go out into the byways and hedges, and compel others to 
come in. I know what it is to have a pleasant home and a 
lucrative practice ; but I have abandoned both that I may be 
the means, under God, of saving others from the depth of 
sorrow and suffering from which I have been extricated. I 
could not rest. Don't leave a stone unturned to reform others. 
Work for this, and you will succeed. 

"It don't make any difference to God whether it is a boot- 
black or a millionaire that you are instrumental in saving. 
Members of the East Boston Reform Club, start out, every one 
of you, as a committee of one, and you will revolutionize the 
whole island. The Reform Club is a life-boat. It restores 
men to a good name and happiness. It brings joy to the 
whole household ; it makes men feel that they can be just 
what they most desire. Let a man struggling to reform feel 
that he has a friend. 

"If there is a moderate drinker in the house, and I have no 
doubt there are many, let me tell them that they are on the 
road to destruction. Do not flatter yourselves that you are 
stronger than others who now fill drunkards' graves. 

" Men of the Reform Club, wear the red ribbon. I would 
as soon go without my shirt as without my red ribbon. I 
don't have to change my ribbon when I change my vest, for I 
have one in every vest. I once was not ashamed to get drunk ; 
why should I be ashamed to acknowledge that I don't drink, 
and am consequently free from the curse ? I want to be known 
as a man who dares to do right ; and if every man who 
reforms wears a red ribbon, it won't be long before the 
absence of the ribbon will be noticeable. 

<c It will keep men from drinking. A man with any decency 
in his make-up would want to take off his ribbon if he was 



THE TRUE PATn ; 

tempted to" drink ; but while he was taking it off God would 
be at work at his conscience to save him from falling. 

" I thought two years ago that I had some sympathy for 
my fellow-men, but I find now that I have ten times more love 
for them than ever. There is a necessity for it ; but don't 
forget that its platform is non-political, non-sectarian and non- 
legal." 

During the Reynolds excitement in Massachusetts, the Rev. 
Joseph Cook, on May 22, in his course of Monday lectures, 
given in the Tremont Temple, Boston, offered the following 
resolutions, which were very favorably received, and which 
had a rising vote : 

" Hesolved, by the audience at the Monday lectures, embrac- 
ing representative clergymen and laymen of all denomina- 
tions : 

" First. That the churches ought to draw forward the tidal 
wave of just reform, and never be dragged in its wake. 

" Second. That the two leading principles of the Reynolds 
Reform Clubs, in the recent New England temperance move- 
ment, are known to us to be in practice really what they are 
announced by a recent convention, in Lowell, to be in theory : 
first, that reformed men should aid each other ; second, that 
religion and temperance should go together. 

" Third. That these principles deserve financial, social, 
moral, and intellectual support, from the pulpits and congre- 
gations of all denominations. 

" Fourth. That Providence has specially blessed the nation 
in the New England temperance prayer-meetings, and other 
distinctively church gatherings and discussions for the re- 
claiming of intemperate men, and teaching the community 
its duty in respect to the sale and use of intoxicating drinks. 

" Fifth. That the interests of every factory child, and all 
the perishing and dangerous classes in cities, and especially of 
the rich and fashionable, imperatively call on the churches to 
follow with comely zeal this indication of Providence. 

'' Sixth. That the renting by church members of buildings 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 439 

or property to be used for the liquor traffic is inconsistent 
with the teachings of Him who purged the temple with a 
whip of small cords." 

Our subject's visit to Connecticut, at Bridgeport, Middle- 
town, and New Haven, was simply a round of successes from 
the outset to the conclusion. Everywhere he met with great 
and permanent success, and he did not quit a place until he 
had accomplished his purpose. In this State his name became 
very popular, and the man himself was esteemed and beloved 
for his large heart and grand qualities. 

He went to Providence, R. L, and here he received the 
usual rousing reception given him wherever he went. Here 
his success was almost instantaneous ; and no such enthusiasm 
over anything was known m this city before. The people 
seemed to be absolutely carried away with temperance re- 
form. The following interesting account of the doctor's 
work at this point is so good that we lay it before the reader 
with great pleasure : " The temperance movement in Provi- 
dence is something remarkable. It is less than three months 
since the Red Ribbon Reform Club was started by Dr. 
Reynolds, and the signers of the pledge number over two 
thousand. 

"The effect is wonderful. The principles they advocate 
take strong hold on the minds of men. The women workers 
are engaged in the same cause, and the politicians and the press 
are also beginning to turn in the direction of this great move- 
ment. Provision has been made for entertainment outside of 
the saloons, by having reading -rooms for use in the day and 
evening, and measures are taken for the permanent lifting up 
of all who are down. 

" The movement, from the first, is one of moral conviction. 
It is the belief of its leader that men cannot keep their 
pledges unless the mind, the heart, and the will, are engaged 
in the work. 

" The Reform Club was started under unfavorable auspices, 
and at least one of its officers was actually intoxicated when 



440 THE TRUE PATH ; 

he signed the pledge. Everybody but the doctor prophesied 
his fall ; but, instead of- falling, he has worked so successfully 
for the cause that he has increased the membership of the 
club sevenfold, and it now stands one of the most prosperous 
in all New England, having a membership of eleven hundred, 
who have been drinking men. There is also an auxiliary 
society of over six thousand, which is a good working 
organization in the temperance interest, and whose Sunday 
evening meetings call out immense audiences." 

One striking characteristic of Dr. Reynolds is the prominent 
stress he puts upon the need of divine assistance in his 
temperance work. This trait is to be highly commended. 
Without the help of Almighty God the temperance re- 
form, now spreading over this vast country, would be a fail- 
ure in every respect — this is an undoubted fact. God has 
heard the prayers of the thousands upon thousands of people 
desirious of living purer and better lives ; and under this most 
merciful and loving protection the wave only grows larger 
and more powerful with the rapid flight of time. He is with 
it — no wonder it is so grandly successful ! 

Dr. Reynolds is a strong and devoted advocate of prayer, 
and believes it is essentially a part of permanent reformation. 
Earnest supplication at the seat of mercy certainly makes the 
" will-power " stronger and firmer ; it certainly does refresh 
and strengthen both the mind and heart ; and yet it is not 
everything. Something besides prayer is necessary to lasting 
conversion, and that something is work — real, honest, steadfast 
labor combined with prayer. As the doctor pointedly re- 
marks : " I believe in prayer, but I believe in work, too. It is 
useless to pray with a man or woman who is starving or per- 
ishing with cold. The first thing to be done is to feed them 
and clothe them. Thus they will be in a condition to listen to 
your prayers and receive permanent benefit. 

" The other day as I was down in the Eastern Railroad de- 
pot, in Boston, I saw a finely dressed man, who came up and 
asked if I knew him. When I told him I did not lie said, 'I 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 441 



am the man who took your pledge in Barre, Mass., when I was 
too drunk to stand alone. They held me up while I signed it. 
I never used to go to church or care anything for religion, but, 
by the help of God, I have kept my pledge. Now I have 
good work and good pay, and I and my family are as happy 
as we can be.' " 

It must not be inferred for a single second that the work, 
after the departure of Dr. Reynolds for other scenes, remains 
quietly still, or lapses into a dormant condition. On the con- 
trary it lives and flourishes like a young and hardy sapling 
planted in the spring time. Greater work is accomplished 
after the doctor quits the place than when he is there. The 
intense enthusiasm created by the red-ribbon advocate, is sup- 
posed by some unbelieving persons, to be surely transitory ; 
but it is not so by any means. It is lasting, as is proven by 
the good results handed in by the several Reform Clubs in 
different parts of the Union from time to time. In referring 
to this subject the Boston Congregationalist very aptly re- 
marks that : " The enthusiasm of its early stages has settled 
down into solid purpose of regular work. Reform Clubs 
spring up in every direction, and seem certain of accomplish- 
ing great good. The politicians and professionals have no 
hand in this work. It belongs to the people, and, belonging 
to them, it wilL succeed. Was there ever a time when the 
churches could labor in the oause so profitably as now ?" 

The Massachusetts legislature was attracted to the doctor's 
labor, and commended it. Mr. Fuller, of Boston, in his place 
on the floor of the House, said, " the reform has done more 
good than all the laws enacted during the last . forty years." 
This remark, pregnant with much significance is made more 
telling from the fact that he was the chairman of the House 
Special Committee on the Liquor Law. 

Such are some of the characteristic facts that marked the 
Reform Club movement in the New England States. Of 
course, what we liave been able to collate by no means covers 
all the different features of the Reynolds temperance wave at 



442 THE TRUE PATH ; 

* 
this time. But from it the reader will be able to get some 

definite conception of its force and strength. Dr. Reynolds' 

thirteen months' labor in Massachusetts and New England 

swept into the temperance fold at least 60,000 people ; that is 

to say, made them active "red-ribbon" workers. Probably 

many more than this have been indirectly influenced, for good 

seed, well planted, grows and yields a harvest that we cannot 

well count. 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE, 443 



CHAPTER XXni. 

DR. REYNOLDS' SPEECH AT THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 

IN PHILADELPHIA. HE COMMENCES THE GRAND MICHIGAN 

WORK. — PROGRESS AND SUCCESS OF A PHENOMENAL 
MOVEMENT. INCIDENTS, SPEECHES, AND STATISTICS. 

While the great International Exposition was being held 
at Philadelphia, a great temperance conference, representing 
different nations, occurred. A great many distinguished peo- 
ple were present, and some of the finest orators in the country 
spoke in tones of startling eloquence. Among the speakers 
was Dr. Reynolds. 

He said, upon this most memorable occasion : " It does not 
put one out in the least to follow such speakers as the Hon. 
Mr. Raper, Rev. Dr. Miner, Gen. Neal Dow, Mrs. Mary 
Livermore, Wendell Phillips, or any other orator, as I do not 
make any profession to oratory myself. I claim to be one of 
God's feeblest instrumentalities, raised up by His grace, and 
trying to do something for Him, and for those who have 
suffered, as I have suffered, through rum. I am one of those 
unfortunate men, who have an inherited appetite for strong 
drink. I love liquor to-night, as well as an infant loves milk. 
The love for intoxicants is as much a part of my make-up as 
my hand, and at the time I left off drinking, I had an experi- 
ence of twenty years. I have suffered from delirium tremens 
as the result of drinking intoxicants. It has cost me three 
thousand dollars for what I know about drinking intoxicants ; 
and I considered my life, previous to two years ago, ten thou- 
sand times worse than thrown away. I have walked my 



444 THE TRUE PATH ; 

father's house night after night for seven nights and days, a 
raving, crazy madman, as the result of intoxicating beverages. 
At the time that I was suffering and upon the verge of delir- 
ium tremens, I was obliged to do something I had never done 
before, in order to rid myself of this infernal curse. I had 
drunk' my last drink. I had broken my bottle. I had sworn 
off before a justice of the peace. I had done everything men 
ordinarily do to rid themselves of the habit of drinking, all to 
no purpose. I had delirium tremens, and it would almost 
seem as though a man who suffered as I during those seven 
days and nights, would never touch the infernal stuff again ; 
but I did, and several times afterwards I was on the verge of 
the delirium tremens, so near to them that I could almost look 
over and see them, and hear them hiss and howl at me. I was, 
obliged to do something different from what I had ever done 
before, in order to rid myself of this infernal appetite. I 
knew but very little about the Bible — drinking men do not 
read the Bible much — but I knew God had promised to assist 
those who asked him in faith, believing, and I threw myself 
upon my knees in my office, by my lounge, and asked Almighty 
God to save me, and promised him that if he would save me 
from such sufferings as I had once been through, that, with his 
assistance, I would be true to myself and to him, and do what 
I could to make others happy. At that time a little band of 
noble women, who had caught the inspiration from the West, 
were praying in my native city in a public place. Some of 
these women had been educated in churches where they did 
not believe in women's praying or talking in public. Sonie of 
them had suffered very much as the result of having drinking 
husbands and sons. They had received no assistance from the 
pulpit, law, or press, and were compelled to do something 
different from what they had ever done before. So they 
threw themselves upon their knees at the foot of the cross, 
and asked God to give them relief from their long suffering. 
And I stand here to-night believing myself to be a monument 
of God's grace, saved through the prayers of the noble women 



OR, GOSPEL TEMPERANCE. 445 

of America, and feel myself to be a beacon-light erected upon 
the breakers upon which I have been shipwrecked, to warn off 
others from those shoals and breakers. Since I signed the 
pledge I have been a happy man. I used to be an unhappy 
man. I didn't want to live ; I dragged out a miserable exist- 
tence. I would have cut my throat, or blown out my brains 
but I didn't dare to. Xow, I am one of the happiest men in 
the world. Instead of going about the streets cursing and 
swearing, I am going about from Dan to Beersheba doing 
what I can to make other people happy, singing 'Nearer, my 
.God, to Thee,' ' Rock of Ages,' < All Hail the Power of Jesus' 
Name,' and looking upon the world as my country, and 

mankind as my countrymen 

. . . . . . You have heard, doubtless, of the work which 

has been going on in Massachusetts and Maine. I claim that 
it is God's work, and at His feet I lay all the glory. Judging 
from a human standpoint, it is a wonderful work, but judging 
from a spiritual point of view, it is not wonderful, because 
nothing God does is wonderful. A minister said to me the 
other day, ' Dr. Reynolds, I have often heard of you, and am 
glad to meet you. I have an offer to make you. I have fifty 
dollars in my pocket, that I will give you if you will tell me 
how you do this work.' I told him I did not do it, that God 
did- it. I- told him that I looked upon myself as one of the 
foolish things of this world that had been raised up to con- 
found the wise. I have a sympathy for the drunkard, which 
I cannot express or explain. I love him as I love my brother ; 
and, as the result of going out, and taking God for my leader, 
and acting what I believed to be a practical Christian life, I 
have the honor and privilege and pleasure of standing here 
to-night, and saying to you that during the past twenty-one 
months, ending the tenth of this month, 51,000 men have been 
reclaimed from drunkenness and planted upon the rock of total 
abstinence — looking to God for assistance to enable them to 
keep their feet the-e. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds 
are f ull-souled Christians. They haven't been saved by cuffs 



446 THE TIOTE PATH ; 

and curses and the cold shoulder, but by the hand of brotherly 
love and sympathy ; not by standing up here and beckoning 
them to come up, but by going down to them, as Christ did, 
and giving them a hand through which an electrical thrill of 
sympathy went, impregnating their whole organization, and 
making them feel that they have one friend. And if there is 
a man in God's world who is ready to accept the hand of 
friendship and sympathy and brotherly love, it is the poor, \ 
unfortunate drunkard. These men must be saved by practical 
Christian work — by treating them as men. 

" Now, this reform movement is not very high-toned. It is 
even found fault with because it is not high-toned enough. 
The reason is because these high-toned people, so-called, 
won't come • down. They don't dare to do right. They don't 
do right. If they did, the reform clubs, instead of being made 
up of middle-class men, and humble men, would be made up 
in part of those in higher circles of society, who would give 
it a higher tone ; but something keeps them out. But this 
reform work commenced, and has been carried on, as all other 
reforms, among the humbler classes in society. It is so with 
Christianity. Christ was the reputed son of a poor man, a 
carpenter, and was in the highways and hedges most of his 
time. He didn't stand up in high places and beckon for men 
to come up ; he didn't judge men by their property or color 
or nationality, or anything except the principle that was in 
him. He mingled with the most debased and vile and unfor- 
tunate and wretched, and led them along, and walked with 
them, and saved them by kindness and sympathy and broth- 
erly love." 

In the summer of 1876, the International Temperance 
Camp-meeting was held at Old Orchard Beach, in the State of 
Maine. It was here that Dr. Reynolds was elected President 
of the National Temperance Association, Avith ex-Governor 
Perham, of Maine, Mrs. Annie Wittenmyer, of Philadelphia, 
and Francis Murphy as Vice-Presidents ; and it was here also 
that he received a very cordial invitation to go West and con- 






















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